Changes
by Abby J and Amber L
Summary: Jed and Abbey get a lesson in dirty politics when Jed's rival targets Abbey. When Leo falls off the wagon again, Jed stops his game of denial and, along with Abbey and Jenny, intervenes. This is the 12th installment of the Snapshots of the Past series!
1. Chapter 1

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 1

Disclaimer: The characters depicted in this story belong to NBC, WB, and Aaron Sorkin. We're just borrowing them for some fun :)

Story Summary: The next two stories in this series will depict how the Bartlets adjust to a new era in their lives. In Changes, Jed and Abbey get a lesson in dirty politics when Jed's rival targets Abbey; when Leo falls off the wagon once again, Jed stops his game of denial and, along with Abbey and Jenny, finally intervenes

Author's Note: Thanks to Skye, Kalia, Lesley, and Kara for their suggestions, advice, and/or inspiration for portions of this story

Feedback is always appreciated!

* * *

By the fall of 1984, despite cultural and political changes that rippled through the country, Ronald Reagan was as popular as ever in his reelection bid for President against Democrat Walter Mondale and his running mate, Geraldine Ferraro, the first woman to run for Vice-president on a major party ticket. Researchers claimed to have isolated the virus that caused AIDS after the deaths of more than four thousand Americans. Ghostbusters was a summer hit at the movies, Madonna was big on the pop music charts, and television viewers prepared for the series premiere of Miami Vice.

In early September, inside an old warehouse on the fringes of a strip mall on Elm Street in downtown Manchester, Jed Bartlet posters hung on the walls behind the candidate himself. It was the night of the 1984 New Hampshire congressional primary and amid the party decorations and the scores of campaign staff, contributors, volunteers, interns, and supporters, Jed stood with a crowd of journalists, reminding them that though he had gone through a crash course in political campaigning over the past few months, he was still in for the fight of his life.

"The is far from over. After these balloons come down tonight, it's back to work until we celebrate another victory on November 6th."

To the left side of one of the cameramen, Larry Tilton nodded to his candidate, signaling Jed to wrap up the interview. In addition to being deputy campaign director, Larry was Jed's chief speechwriter throughout primary season and by now, he had learned that Jed was a man of many words and there was only one way to pry him from a crowd eager to hear him speak - tell him that Abbey was waiting.

As the reporters filtered out, Larry ushered Jed out of the room. "That was perfect."

"What happened to nothing's ever perfect?" Jed teased.

"Tonight, everything's perfect."

"My wife will be the judge of that. Where is she?"

"She's in the field office, thrilled with our victory no doubt."

"She showed me just how thrilled she was at 11:33 on the dot, the precise moment that Johnson conceded." Jed was grinning from ear to ear, remembering the deep, passionate kiss that touched his lips before he even had a chance to hang up the phone. "Tell me someone got a picture of that."

"Since the press wasn't in your suite, I think it's safe to say, they didn't." Larry didn't have to glance over to know Jed was disappointed. "Don't worry. I'm sure you and Abbey will give them plenty of opportunities over the next seven weeks. She's awfully photogenic. The press loves her."

"Why wouldn't they? The woman's got an IQ of 150. She's sophisticated, articulate, and she looks like a million bucks every single day of her life."

"I still don't know how you got her to marry you."

"I'm not above bribes." Jed smirked.

"Keep your voice down! Taken out of context, you'll destroy your campaign before it even starts."

"Relax. We won. I don't think it's unreasonable to take a little break before we talk politics again."

Larry led him through a couple of double doors to a more intimate room where only campaign staff were permitted. "Yeah, right. Don't get cocky, Jed. You won the primary by three points. Latest polls have you down in the general by 17."

"Latest polls? When did anyone have time to poll?"

"We polled last week. If you were to win, what would your chances be against Elliot Roush?"

"And he wins by 17 points?"

"That's right."

"Any chance Roush isn't the Republican nominee?"

"Not in this lifetime. No concession yet and it's not official, but he's already bagged enough votes and latest wire reports say the Union Leader is calling it."

Jed made a beeline for Abbey when he saw her standing in the bullpen. "Thank God you're here. These people won't leave me alone."

"You love every minute of it." Abbey gave him a peck on the lip.

"Not when there's trouble."

"Trouble?" Abbey asked Larry.

"Yes, Ma'am. I was just explaining to Jed that he's going to have to step up his game if he expects to win in November."

"Step up my game?" Jed scoffed. "I've been practically living on the campaign trail for the past month. My youngest daughter has forgotten what I look like and has to count on family photographs to remind her. I've spent a fortune on ads and media buys..."

"None of which has been your money. It's all come from contributors...and we're running low. We need a new list."

"For crying out loud, Larry. I've given you dozens of lists."

"We need more. We've tapped out all our donors. Now that you've won the primary, we'll get a lot from the national party, but I'm afraid we might need more to win in November."

"Here we go."

"Write down every person you've ever known, every organization you've ever donated to, anyone who you think might donate to your campaign. I'm talking prep school classmates, college roommates, old professors, anyone and everyone. We need it...that's the only way to beat Roush."

"Roush is independently wealthy," Abbey chimed in. "Surely Jed's got a chance without all that money."

"It's been my experience the person who runs out of money first is usually on the losing side of election day."

"Without exception?"

"There are always exceptions, Abbey, but I don't think it's worth the risk."

"So what else are you suggesting?" Jed asked.

"Out-of-state fundraising events. We'll travel across the New England at the very least."

"Why in the world would people in Vermont donate to my campaign in New Hampshire?"

"Because in the House of Representatives, every vote counts to every citizen in this country and keeping a man like Elliot Roush from voting is appealing to some of our neighbors in Vermont. Not to mention, every effort to keep the Democratic majority in the House is in every Democrat's best interest."

"Okay. So I give you yet another list and we hop on board a bus to these fundraising events. If we do all this, you think we'll be set?"

"We might be. We'll see what comes of it."

Derek Reynolds stood behind the threesome. As Jed's campaign director, it was Derek's job to lay out the agenda, but personality conflicts had weakened his relationship with Jed and often, he delegated his duties to Larry.

Leaning against a desk in the field office, Derek scribbled furiously onto a yellow note pad, then hung up the phone and joined the group. "It's official. Elliot Roush just won by a landslide."

"And so it begins," Jed replied.

"Did Larry tell you about the multi-state tour?"

"Tour? Wait a minute. He said fundraising events. He didn't mention a tour."

"A tour of appearances. Don't worry, scheduling has an itinerary. We start right away."

"Not this week."

"Jed, we're losing valuable time."

"I don't care, Derek. Last week was Labor Day weekend. I promised my girls if they put up with me spending so much time on the campaign over the summer, we'd all go camping on Labor Day weekend, but you told me it would be political suicide to do such a thing a week before the primary."

"It would have been."

"All right. I listened and I'm glad I did because you were right. But now the campaign is over and I'm not backing out of my promise to my family."

"Postpone it for another weekend."

"I already postponed it for this weekend."

"Postpone it again."

"It's one lousy weekend! Friday through Sunday, that's all."

"That's a whole weekend of appearances wiped out..."

"Even if I wanted to postpone it, Derek, I can't. I've got my old friend from Chicago and his family flying down on Thursday. It's set. We're going camping. This is going to have to wait until Monday."

"Jed..." Abbey muttered softly. "You and I are supposed to meet with Zoey's preschool teacher Monday morning."

"Oh, right. So we'll start on Monday afternoon."

"You're taking Liz to get her license after school."

"Damn, that's Monday?" Abbey nodded. "Say, Derek...you wanna get me excited about this multi-state tour and whatever else you've got planned? Have Larry here write me a speech to propose new legislation raising the driving age to twenty-five."

"Yeah, I'll get right on it." Derek's sarcastic rebuttal as he turned away, dulled Jed's smile immediately.

"What in the world is his problem?"

"He doesn't like losing," Larry said flatly. "He thinks you're a long shot, Jed."

"Then I'll tell him to get out."

"You can't."

"Why the hell not?"

"Because it's a presidential election year. You need a campaign director and at this point in the game, anyone worth having is already taken. You need Derek just as much as he needs you."

"You'll have to remind me sometime why in the world I hired him."

"You're a masochist and he's not above bribes?" Larry joked.

* * *

A cool September breeze ruffled the gauzy curtains in Jed and Abbey's bedroom early the next morning. Abbey slept on her side with Jed directly behind her. His leg was thrown over hers and his arm draped around her waist, meeting her hand right at her belly. Though they were both starting to stir, neither wanted to disturb the comfort of the others embrace, so they stayed like that, quiet and motionless until the piercing sound of Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" jerked them violently from their position.

"For God's sake!" Jed bellowed as he tried to recover from the jolt.

"I'll take care of it."

Still groggy, Abbey stood up to slip her nude form into her silk robe before making her way down the hall to Lizzie's room. Her eldest daughter was sixteen now and a summer of working as a waitress at Friendly's and a weekend party planner had made her a bit more independent. Of course, with that independence, that Bartlet stubborn streak of hers was even more apparent.

"Elizabeth?" Abbey knocked, but received no response. "Elizabeth?" She opened the door and peeked inside to see Liz dancing around her room. "ELIZABETH?"

Lizzie spun around. "MOM! What are you doing?"

"Turn your music down!"

Liz turned the knob on her tape player. "Why didn't you knock?"

"I did. If your music wasn't so loud..."

"Sorry. It's the only way I can wake myself up."

"You did a good job of waking us all up."

"I'll keep it down next time."

"Thank you."

Seeing Abbey turn to leave, Liz stepped in front of her. "Mom, may I drive to school this morning?"

"I don't know, Lizzie."

"Come on! Why did you bother to let me get my restricted license if you weren't going to let me use it? I'm taking my test next week. How am I supposed to pass if you won't ever let me drive?"

"We let you drive."

"Hardly ever, unless it's a driving lesson. I need to drive so I can practice what you taught me. Otherwise, I'll fail my test." She cocked her eyebrow and accused suspiciously, "Unless...that's part of your plan to keep me off the road for another year."

"Believe me, Baby Doll, if your father and I didn't want you to get your license, we'd be a lot more creative about it."

"Tell Dad he can't change the driving age." She knew her father too well.

"Smart girl." Abbey smiled. "Now get ready and I'll meet you downstairs for breakfast."

"I'm driving!" Liz called after her as Abbey left.

"We'll see," Abbey shouted back.

Smiling, Lizzie ejected her Cyndi Lauper tape and replaced it with Madonna's "Material Girl."

* * *

Walking into the kitchen, Jed hesitated as he saw Abbey standing at the stove scrambled some eggs. She was dressed in a pair of black slacks and a blue sweater that fell down one shoulder. With her hair pulled up into a clip, the soft smooth skin of her neck was exposed for his touch. He tiptoed behind her and without any warning, he left a trail of tender kisses from the flesh of her shoulder all the way up to her hairline.

"One of these days, I'm going to burn breakfast," she said as she closed her eyes at the first feel of his lips on her skin.

"One of these days, maybe I'll care if you burn breakfast."

"Jed?"

"Yeah?"

Abbey stepped out of his hold and released the clip from her hair. "What do you see?"

"I see a beautiful head of hair."

"What color hair?"

"Auburn. Is this a trick question?"

"Specifically."

"Specifically, it's brown with red highlights, making it a beautiful shade of dark auburn. Abbey, what the hell?"

"In that nest of brown and red, I found a gray strand this morning. Can you believe it? I'm in my 30s and already, I have gray hair." He chuckled. "JED! It's not funny."

"ONE gray hair, Abbey. Big deal."

"I'm getting old. And so are you."

"Hey, feel free to fret over yourself, but don't drag me into it. I'm not the one going gray."

"This is you being supportive?"

"No, this is me being amused," Jed replied. "Abbey, you look like you're twenty years old. So what if one single gray hair is tangled in your gorgeous mane?"

"I don't like it. It gives me the creeps..." Abbey paused when she heard a familiar girlish giggle echoing through the door of the corner pantry. She knew that giggle. She recognized the squeaky pitch, the light, playful tone. She turned a glance to her husband and he nodded in agreement.

Jed headed for the pantry, opening the door too swiftly for the little monster inside to have a chance to react before the light hit her face. "AHA!"

As he hoisted her into the air, Zoey looked at her father with a look of innocence she knew would melt his heart. "I was playing."

"Eavesdropping," Abbey corrected her youngest daughter. "What have we told you about eavesdropping, young lady?"

"To do it to Lizzie and Ellie and tell Daddy all about it."

Jed tried to hide the four-year-old's smile by pulling her into a tight hug against his chest. Over Zoey's light strawberry hair, he whispered to Abbey, "I have no idea where she gets these things."

Abbey knew better. She shook her head disapprovingly and turned to scoop the eggs out of the skillet. "Karma's a dangerous thing, Jethro."

"Not as dangerous as our three daughters conspiring together."

"They do not conspire."

"HA! You're so naive."

"Speaking of the girls, you wanna get them down here? We're going to be late."

"We're here, Mom," Lizzie said as she and Ellie turned the corner to head to the kitchen table. Liz wore a hot pink tanktop under a black lace sweater. Her skirt crept up just above her knee and sleek black leggings covered her legs. "What's up?"

Jed took a look at her get-up. She had teased and tamed her long chestnut hair behind a hot pink headband. The tips of her fingers peeked through a pair of fishnet gloves and a chain of beads hung around her neck. "What are you wearing?"

"Isn't it cool?"

"Elizabeth, what in the world are you wearing?" he asked again.

"It's my Material Girl outfit...my own version of it. I didn't want to look EXACTLY like everyone else, but I think I'm close enough."

"Please enlighten me because no one else in this house is wearing what you're wearing."

"We're living in a material world, Dad..."

"And you are a material girl. Spare me."

"You asked. Anyway, I like it."

Jed looked to Abbey for support. "You're not going to let her wear that to school, are you?" Abbey didn't respond right away. "Abbey? Are you?"

"She's not showing any skin and she's not wearing anything her friends aren't wearing."

"Abbey!"

"Jed, we agreed that if Lizzie worked this summer, the money would be hers to do what she wanted as long it was inside the scope of our rules."

"When we said that, I assumed she wanted to save up for a car." Lizzie reached across the table to hand her father a small note. Jed stared at it blankly. "What's this?"

"That's how much I earned this summer. You said you'd match it to buy a car."

"This is what you made? How did you make so much?"

"I know you didn't think I would make enough for a car, but I worked really hard and I saved all my money." She looked down at her outfit. "Well, most of my money."

"I like your clothes, Lizzie," Zoey offered.

"Me too!" Ellie added. "Will you tease my hair tomorrow?"

"Great," Jed grumbled. "Ellie, I love your hair exactly the way it is."

"I wanna look like Madonna."

He cringed at that name. "Madonna is a fad. She'll be gone before the end of next year."

"No she won't," Liz sneered. "She's huge. She'll be around forever. Won't she, Mom?"

Surrendering the conversation, Abbey put her hands up. "I'm staying out of this one."

"Chicken," Jed mumbled.

"Well, I think she'll be around forever," Liz repeated. "And I like my outfit."

"Me too," Ellie replied.

"Me too," Zoey added.

Seeing that he was outnumbered, Jed addressed Abbey once more. "Would you say something to your daughter please? She looks like a bag child."

"Short of dressing her myself, I'm not sure what you want me to do."

"Dressing her yourself might not be a bad idea."

"Dad, I'm sixteen! I know how to pick out my own clothes and as long as it's not too sexy, I don't know why you care."

"Because this isn't the Elizabeth I know. What happened to wearing normal, respectable clothes? This..." he pointed to her gloves. "This is the reason people toss around the phrase school uniforms."

"Don't bring up school uniforms. The idea is disgraceful and you know it."

"I know no such thing."

"You hate school uniforms, Dad. It takes away an individual's right to free expression. It clouds their individuality and undermines their choices, forcing them to conform to what school board members mandate is conducive to an appropriate learning environment."

"You're going to sit there in that outfit and talk to me about individuality?"

"Yes!" She took a sip of her juice.

Jed had to admit he was impressed by her strategy of quoting his words. He had given her the speech on school uniforms before and he had outlined his reasons for voting against the proposal in the state house. He just didn't realize that Liz had listened so attentively.

"Look, Lizzie, you're level-headed, smart, responsible...I just don't know why you want..."

As the sound of the doorbell rang through the house, Liz pushed out her seat. "I'll get it!"

"Because what I had to say wasn't important or anything," Jed finished.

Abbey laughed at his pout, then turned her attention to Ellie. "Hey, go get your homework if you want me to check it before I leave."

"Okay. Wanna help me get my books, Zo?"

"Yeah!" Zoey jumped from her seat and followed Ellie upstairs.

Still laughing, Abbey put a hand on Jed's shoulder. "It'll pass. She'll abandon the Material Girl thing soon enough."

"When she gets back, you explain to her the absurdity of arguing for individuality while she's sitting there dressed like thousands of other girls."

"I will."

"I'm not kidding, Abbey. I need you to step in from time to time. Otherwise, these girls...they're going to send me to an early grave."

"Spoken like the father of every teenage girl in America. Luck for you, you'll only have to go through this three times."

Jed shook his head. "It's Lizzie. She's the ringleader. All we have to do is control her and the other two will fall into step." Abbey laughed louder, provoking his stare. "You think I'm kidding."

"No, I don't. That's what makes it hilarious."

"Let's see how hilarious you think it is when you find your second gray hair." Abbey gave him an incredulous stare of her own. "Don't look at me like that. You'd still be gray-free if it wasn't for our daughters."

Liz gingerly approached her parents. "Mom, it's for you. It's some guy. It sounds important."

Abbey stood to walk out of the kitchen. "Jed?" He looked up from his plate. "You really think I look twenty?"

It took him a moment to remember his comment while she was cooking, but when he did, he rose to his feet to accompany her to the front door. "You look hotter than twenty, Babe."

On the front stoop, a man held an envelope in his hand and when Abbey opened the door, he turned to face her. "Dr. Abigail Bartlet?"

"Yes?" Abbey cautiously took the envelope he handed her as Jed watched him leave.

"What is it, Abbey?"

After skimming it, Abbey looked up at her husband. "I'm being sued for malpractice."

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Jed won his primary, but was told that he was 17 points behind Elliot Roush in the general election; Abbey is told she's being sued for malpractice; Leo entered a rehab program in Switzerland (Chapter 7 of Checkmate); Abbey loses her patient – Bill Niederlander (Chapter 7 of The Nobel Laureate)

Summary: The Bartlets and McGarrys go to Acadia National Park; Leo has trouble avoiding temptation

* * *

"That's what you're wearing?" Jed looked up at his friend from his seat on the old wicker swing on the deck of the farmhouse. He twirled a cigarette between his fingers as his sneakers tapped along below him.

"What?" Leo looked down at his outfit - a pair of slacks and a sky blue dress shirt that was buttoned to his chest, left open on top to reveal a white T-shirt underneath.

"Casual, Leo. Why is that a foreign word to you?"

Leo proudly lifted his foot and pointed his toe. "Loafers," he said as he took a seat next to a chuckling Jed. "We were supposed to be on the road hours ago."

"You haven't figured it out yet."

"What?"

"The code."

"The code?"

"When my wife says we're leaving at a certain time, you're supposed to automatically add two hours to that time. It keeps you from being annoyed that we're late."

"Yeah, but we're still waiting."

"It's only been an hour, forty-five. Give them fifteen more minutes and then follow my lead."

"You do this that often?"

"Often enough." He took a puff of his cigarette. "I don't care though. It gives me a chance to savor my last smoke."

"You can't smoke at Acadia?"

"I've been smoking a lot since the campaign started. Abbey's been on me to quit and this weekend, I told her I would. No cigarettes."

"Cold turkey?"

"Cold turkey."

"Great." Leo rolled his eyes. "You're going to be in nicotine withdrawal all weekend."

"You should try it with me."

"Forget it."

"Come on, Leo. One weekend without a cigarette. It'll be hard, but we'll get through it. Who knows, maybe when we get back, we can quit and make both our wives happy."

"Jenny seems perfectly happy, thank you." Leo noted Jed's silent response. It was in his eyes, that look of dismay that Leo immediately caught. "How's Abbey doing? I asked her about the lawsuit, but she kind of brushed me off."

"She hasn't talked about it much," Jed replied.

"I'd like to help in any way I can."

"I didn't think you dealt with malpractice cases."

"I don't, but I know attorneys who can help her out. What's the story?"

"His name was Niederlander. Bill Niederlander. He died of post-op complications October two years ago. I remember that case because Abbey had to take him into surgery on Halloween. She missed trick-or-treating with me and the girls that night. She came home hours later, her make-up smeared the way it always was when she lost a patient. She still cries, you know? Every time she loses someone, she cries. I thought she'd get used to it over time, that it would get easier. But she still cries each and every time as if it was the first one all over again. That's how much she cares, Leo. What they're saying about her now...that she caused that man's death...that she was responsible..."

"Malpractice suits are common, Jed. A loved one dies in a hospital, relatives start asking why. Before you know it, they're seeking answers through their attorney."

"Worse case scenario - say the judge or the jury or whoever doesn't believe her. Can they take her license?"

"Nah. Unless there was gross negligence..."

"There wasn't."

"I'm saying if there was..."

"There wasn't. Abbey says so, the hospital says so, I know so. You've never seen Abbey in action so you can't possibly judge her. The things she knows...the stuff she can do, procedures that most other doctors can't even do...she's amazing. She couldn't have made a mistake that big. There's just no way."

"I wasn't suggesting that she was negligent. I'm saying that unless there was gross negligence, she'll be fine. They won't take her license." He watched as Jed crushed his cigarette in an ashtray and rose to his feet to approach the railing. "And by the way, I have seen Abbey in action. I saw her work on you in Boston."

Jed's thoughts wandered back in time to the night ten years earlier when he was attacked by a group of men in a dark alleyway after he proposed changes to Boston's school busing policy. Leo and Abbey had found him unconscious and bleeding that night. The doctors later told him that had it not been for Abbey's quick thinking and medical expertise, he very well might have died.

"Yeah. I forgot. I didn't mean to jump all over you, Leo. When it comes to Abbey, I'm sensitive and overprotective."

"I know." Leo smiled. "Was that your last one?"

Jed turned to see Leo gesturing the ashtray. "Yeah. Give me yours."

"Why?"

"If you bring yours with you, the temptation will be too great."

"So I have to suffer because you made a promise to Abbey?"

"That's how it works."

"Not in my world it doesn't, Pal."

"Aw, come on. What kind of friend are you anyway?"

"The kind that likes his cigarettes, especially this weekend." He shook his head. "As if embracing the great outdoors isn't bad enough under normal circumstances."

"You'll love Acadia."

"I promise you, I won't."

* * *

Leo lost the cigarette battle that afternoon. Once Jenny found out about the arrangement between Jed and Abbey, she guilted Leo into surrendering his cigarettes as well. Triumphantly, the women tossed several packs of cigarettes into the trash before loading up their minivan with travel games and coolers of sandwiches and snacks for the drive up the jagged coast of Maine towards the lush forests of Acadia National Park.

Camping out at the national parks had become a summer tradition in the Bartlet household. In the past, they always planned a mid-summer vacation. The girls would be out of school and Jed would be between semesters at Dartmouth. Father and daughters would wait to find out how much vacation time Abbey could secure, then they'd huddle around the kitchen table to discuss where to go and to plot out their destination on a map.

But this year, things were different. They had to wait until after the primary election and by then, the school year was already underway, leaving them only a few days and restricting their options to Acadia since it was the closest.

To Leo's delight, they reached the campground later than planned that night, limiting their outdoor activities until morning. By the time they set up their tents, the gray haze of dusk had faded into nightfall with only the glow of the moon and the flames of a crackling campfire lighting the area.

Elizabeth, cuddled up inside her favorite throw blanket and sipping a cup of hot chocolate, sat at the picnic table beside Abbey and Jenny while Ellie, Zoey, and Mallory gathered with Jed around the blaze to wrap their chocolate-marshmellow graham crackers inside a foil capsule and roast it over the fire.

"Tell us about the legend of Sarah James, Daddy!" Ellie enthusiastically encouraged her father. "Mallory's never heard it."

This, too, was a Bartlet tradition. From early childhood, the girls had become accustomed to Smores and ghost stories just before bed during these camping trips. Jed and Abbey took turns sharing haunting tales that were every bit entertaining as they were scary. The legend of Sarah James was Ellie's favorite. As Jed settled in to begin, Zoey clenched her eyes shut and snuggled up to her sister.

The first sound of girlish shrieks lured Leo out of his tent. "What's going on?"

"Uncle Jed's telling us a story," Mallory answered.

"Yeah?" Leo leaned back against the picnic table. "Let's hear it."

"It's not your kind of story, Leo," Jenny said. "It's a ghost story."

Leo shuddered at the thought. "I've never understood why kids love ghost stories."

"It's not just kids. You know I can never resist a good ghost story." She tugged on his arm until he sat down beside her. "And you love it when I get scared."

He wrapped his arms tight around his wife. "Only if I'm here with you."

Abbey couldn't help but spy on the couple. Never had she seen Leo and Jenny as happy and as in love as they seemed during this trip. There were times when she regrettably thought that they wouldn't make it. Leo and Jenny were headed for divorce, she once told Jed during Leo's stint at the rehab clinic in Switzerland.

In her heart, she didn't think that program was stringent enough for a man like Leo. She didn't think a month at an outpatient clinic was enough to rid him of his addiction. But she was wrong, she now had to admit. Two years had passed since his last drop of alcohol and Abbey felt ashamed that she ever doubted his strength.

From the moment he and Jenny arrived in Manchester, Abbey witnessed the loving glances, heard the playful banter between them. Little did she know she was being fooled. The love between them was real, but Leo's sobriety wasn't.

He still kept a flask hidden in a pageless hardcover book that he packed in the bottom zipper of his briefcase under all his folders and other belongings. Jenny never had any reason to suspect him because the only time he stole a sip of alcohol was during business trips out of town. On other nights, he simply waited for her to fall asleep, then popped a Valium before bed. Sure, he missed the taste of his Scotch on those nights, but the Valium helped him relax just as well and if it meant he could avoid a stand-off with Jenny, it was well worth it to him. No one knew his secret and he was determined to make sure no one found out.

After their daughters were tucked in their sleeping bags, the adults shuffled their cards for a game of Shanghi-Rummy. It was a throw back to the younger years of their friendship, to the times when the foursome used to crowd around the small table in Jed and Abbey's cozy Boston apartment or the wooden coffee table in Leo and Jenny's tiny one-bedroom hovel in Chicago and play a couple of rounds of Shanghi as they teased and bantered with each other over sodas and pretzels until the sun came up.

Their lives had certainly changed since then, but during the game that night at Acadia, it was obvious that the bond between them hadn't. It was as strong as it always had been and if anything, it was getting even stronger.

Once Abbey declared her victory, the gang packed it up and headed to bed. They were older now and Jed couldn't help but remind the others that their younger counterparts would have insisted on watching the sun make its debut at dawn over the mountains behind Eagle Lake or over the cliffs of the rocky Atlantic shore just minutes away.

Leo scoffed at the notion and exhaustedly wrapped his arm around Jenny's waist to lead her to their tent before Jed could tempt her. Laughing, Abbey followed their lead, leaving Jed to put out the fire and join her.

* * *

The next morning, Jed managed to finagle Leo into a fishing excursion on Lake Reiner after finding him smoking in the woods on the outskirts of the campsite. Because he assumed Jed wanted to join him in a smoke, Leo initially agreed, but the second he discovered that his old friend was choosing to summon his willpower to stay true to Abbey's request, he tried to change his mind.

It was too late, Jed told him. He had committed to going fishing and if he didn't follow through, Jed would have to tell Jenny about the pack of cigarettes he had smuggled past her the day before. Defeated, a reluctant Leo relinquished his cigarettes and followed Jed back to the campsite to gather up the gear.

Neither had ever been fishing, so when a couple of hunters at the neighboring campsite spooked them with stories of bears running wild in the woods then offered Leo a shotgun just in case, he instantly accepted despite Jed's incredulous ribbing about the ridiculousness of it all. Of course, the more he criticized, the stronger Leo held on to the shotgun. Leo was being oppositional, Jed thought, so if having the gun made him less defensive, then he'd concede. Deep down though, he knew that gun or no gun, none of this made Leo very happy.

They had barely left shore and, already, Leo was grumbling. "Do you even know anything about fishing?"

"No, but I'm going to learn. And so are you."

"Because we have nothing better to do? One would never know you're in the middle of a heated race for Congress. If you ask me, we should scrap this whole weekend and you should get your ass out on the campaign trail."

"I didn't ask you, did I?" Jed snapped. Twenty-four hours without a cigarette put a damper on his mood. "It's beautiful out here, isn't it? Quiet. Peaceful."

"Disturbing."

He turned a sharp stare Leo's way. "You know what, if you're not going to at least try to enjoy this, then just keep quiet, all right?"

"Fine." Leo sat back with his arms folded as Jed lowered his bait into the water. Several awkward minutes passed, both of them searching for something to say.

Finally, Jed spoke up. "Remember we used to joke that one day, I'd run for office and you'd run my campaign? We said that as a team, no one could beat us."

"I remember."

"I'm about to be killed in this election, Leo. I'm not kidding, it's awful. You kinda struck a nerve with that comment."

"The numbers are that bad?"

"Yeah. I'm running around like a chicken with his head cut-off. They want me to go to fundraising events all over New England. I have no idea what I'm doing. My brother's the head of the finance office and I don't know the first thing about what he does...and I'm an economist of all things. I understand how to crunch numbers, but there's so much more to it. The press office, there's a mystery for ya, and no one has taken the time to explain to me why we even have a field office. I talk to people. That's what I do, right? But lately, everything I say has to be screened by seven others before I get to say it. And even then, these reporters...they can spin anything to mean everything other than what I intended. My campaign director hates my guts and the others just put up with me because they don't have another candidate and it's too late in the election cycle to get a new gig."

"So you're a bit overwhelmed."

"That's an understatement if I ever heard one."

"Okay, first of all, I don't think anyone hates your guts and I doubt the others are only there because they have to be. Political operatives give up so much so they can make a difference in this world. They're not going to back a candidate they don't believe in."

"No, but they may back one they don't particularly like."

"That may be. You're hotheaded, you snap at people, you can't remember their names if your life depended on it..."

"Can we get to the point?"

"You're also smart and articulate. You're passionate. You actually care about what you're doing and you know how to get it done. Those qualities outweigh the others. My point is, I know Jed Bartlet. There's nothing about him I don't like because when I think of him, I think of all the good things. These guys...when they get to really know you, they'll feel the same." Jed gave him an appreciative smile. "In the meantime, what can I do to bring up your numbers?"

"Unless you're willing to pack up and move to New Hampshire, I'm not sure there's anything you can do."

"Well...I've got vacation time coming up next month. I could, you know, scope things out. It'll be pretty late in the game, but I could at least help out a little. And anyway, by then, you may not even need me. Your guys may just turn this thing around. I mean, look, they helped you win the primary, right? They can't be completely incompetent."

"Yeah." Jed had to agree. "Yeah, you're right. The primary was on Tuesday. It's too early to focus on the numbers."

"It'll turn around. I know it will. And I'll come down in a few weeks to make sure."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome." Leo's demeanor changed in those few moments. Though he wasn't pleased about being out on the lake, the confrontational tone to his voice had disappeared. "Now that that's settled, can we give up this foolishness and head back to shore?"

"Nope," Jed replied. "We haven't caught any fish yet. We're not going back to shore until we fill up this bucket."

That did it. His left brow arched as a sign of determination, Leo picked up the shotgun and aimed at the water. He reloaded and shot again and again and when fish popped to the surface and floated in front of them, he renewed his earlier tone and asked, "Can I please have that damn bucket?"

* * *

Abbey and Jenny had a light lunch of hot buttered rice and broiled vegetables waiting when Leo and Jed returned to camp a short time later. Abbey had also packed their backpacks with snacks and trail mix in preparation for an easy hike up the Cadillac Summit trail.

As expected, when it came time to leave, Leo backed out. "Hiking's really not my thing."

"None of this is 'your thing,'" Jed teased him.

"I let you force me into fishing earlier. I'm drawing the line at hiking. I'd rather just stay here and enjoy the scenery for a while."

"I don't wanna go either," Mallory said.

"Me either," Ellie agreed.

Confused, Jed approached his daughter. "Ellie, you love to go hiking."

"The girls are pouting because Jenny and I won't let them swim in the ocean," Abbey informed her husband before she addressed Ellie. "You can stay here if you want to, but Uncle Leo's not going to take you down there either. Right, Leo?"

"Not if you don't want me to."

"Thank you."

Unwilling to undermine his wife in front of his impressionable daughter, Jed waited until Abbey slipped into the tent to get her backpack. He followed her in. "Why can't they go swimming?"

"It's too cold," she said flatly as if she was surprised that he didn't already know.

"It's warm out. It's technically still summer and it's been a particularly hot summer this year. I don't think there's any harm in them going down there. You know Ellie's favorite thing about coming to Acadia is swimming in the coves."

"That's because we usually take this trip in July. This time, it's September. I don't want her getting sick this early in the school year. Besides, even if I agreed that it wasn't that cold out, you'd still have a hard time convincing me to let them go."

"Why?"

"No lifeguard on duty. The beaches are only staffed until Labor Day which happened to be last weekend. The surf's pretty rough out there today. I don't feel comfortable letting Leo watch them alone."

"All right, good point. So we just let them stay here and mope while we go hiking?"

"If that's what they insist on doing. Jenny and I tried to cheer them up. We even told them that we'd go sailing tomorrow. Nothing worked. They're hoping if they pout enough, we'll give in to the swimming thing, so I say let them stay and pout if that's what they want to do."

"Okay." When she turned her back to him, he hooked his finger through the belt loop on her jeans and whirled her back around. "In case I haven't said it today, I love you."

"Love you too." She kissed him.

* * *

Jed, Abbey, Liz, Zoey, and Jenny had been gone less than an hour when Leo retreated to his tent. He tried to take a nap, but much like the night before, sleeping on the ground really didn't appeal to him. He would have given anything for a cigarette right then and there, but a search of the campsite turned up empty. He had no idea what Jed had done with the pack he caught him with in the woods.

Instead, he reached for something else, something that, in his mind, was much better than a nicotine high. Ignoring the Valium pills he had put in an inconspicuous pill bottle, he pulled out his binoculars.

"I wanna do some bird-watching," he had told Jenny back in Chicago.

It was out of character for him, but she had no reason to doubt him. Or so she thought. Each eyepiece only served one purpose - to hold his Scotch.

Leo listened for any sound of Ellie or Mallory spying on him from outside the tent. When he was convinced he was clear, he unscrewed the right eyepiece of the binoculars and took a quick sip from the flask. He screwed it back on, but seconds later, he realized he wanted more. He took another sip and then another and then another until he found himself completely helpless over the cravings provoked inside him.

Mallory called for her father soon afterwards, but he was sound asleep on his belly on top of his sleeping bag, his faux binoculars buried under his chest. She tiptoed into the tent to make sure he was out, then greeted Ellie with a mischievous smile and the same arched brow Jed had seen on Leo's face at the lake.

"Do you have your bathing suit on?"

"Uh huh." Ellie nodded, knowing exactly what Mallory was suggesting. "We're gonna get in trouble though."

"Not if we get back before they do. Just don't get your hair wet!"

Alone, the two girls raced carelessly down an embankment around a winding trail towards the rough water.

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Jed told Leo about his pact with Abbey to quit smoking; Jenny made a similar pact with Leo and the ladies got rid of their husbands' cigarettes; Leo agreed to watch Ellie and Mallory who were sulking over not being allowed to go swimming; Leo snuck into his tent to take a drink of the scotch he had hidden inside his faux binoculars; with Jenny, Abbey, and Jed off on a hike and Leo asleep after his drink, Mallory and Ellie decided to go swimming; Jenny told Abbey she and Leo were going to her uncle's clinic in Switzerland so Leo could get help with his drinking (Chapter 7 of Checkmate)

Summary: Ellie and Mallory realize they're in over their heads; Jenny gives Leo an ultimatum; Jed tries to put aside any angry feelings in an effort to help his friend

* * *

"WE WON! WE WON!" Perched high on her father's shoulders, Zoey bounced up and down.

"Even with a four-year-old strapped to my neck, I still beat the pants off you, Babe," Jed gloated to Abbey who was slowly making her way towards him.

"Leave it to you to turn a hike into a race," Abbey replied as she and Liz approached.

"It shouldn't have been hard for you. As you remind me so often, you are an avid hiker. What's the problem?"

"The problem was you didn't hike. You sprinted. And you cut me off at the bend back there, competitive soul that you are."

"You're just a bad sport." He tipped himself backwards to let Zoey down.

"A bad sport who won't be complaining about an aching back in a couple of hours. Oh, and by the way, when your muscles start to throb from carrying Zoey the whole way, you might consider relying on someone else to give you a back rub."

"Fine with me. Jenny?" He looked behind his wife to Jenny.

"Sure, I'll help you out. Leo says I have fingers made for massaging every glorious part of the male anatomy." She winked at Abbey.

Grinning at the way Abbey narrowed her eyes at her friend, Jed headed towards the tents. "Speaking of Leo, where is he? Leo! Hey, Leo, get out here. I want to tell you all about how my wife, the self-proclaimed hiker in the family, couldn't keep up on one of Acadia's easiest trails."

"You're a lot less attractive when you're gloating. You know that, right?" Abbey scanned the campsite. "Where is everyone?"

"Uncle Leo probably took them to see the carriage roads by Hooks Pond," Liz assumed. "You know how Ellie loves to feed the ducks."

Jenny didn't buy it. If feeding the ducks was on the agenda, Leo would have urged the girls to wait for everyone else to get back, anything to get out of a solitary moment of enjoying nature. He probably dozed off, she thought, then smiled when she peeked her head inside the tent and saw him sleeping on his stomach.

"Leo," she whispered as she neared him. "Leo, hon, wake up."

With a hand on his shoulder, she rolled him on to his back. There he was, completely exposed and unable to hide from Jenny's scrutinizing glare. His right hand was clutching his binoculars. The eyepiece was open and the scotch inside had trickled onto his shirt, staining it with an amber streak. His mouth was open and when she bent forward, the smell of alcohol made her sick to her stomach.

"Leo! Wake up!" She shook him hard. "LEO! Leo, wake up! LEO!"

Hearing the commotion from outside, Jed opened the flap. "Jenny, what's going on?"

"He passed out."

"Passed out?" Jed motioned Abbey.

Jenny was silent for a moment, emotionally paralyzed as her mind weighed the possible excuses. Finally, she turned towards Jed. Her eyes brimming with shame, she admitted, "He had a little too much to drink."

"Leo?" Jed walked closer. Obviously caught off-guard by what he was seeing, he bent down to shake Leo just as Jenny had done seconds earlier. "Leo? Leo, come on. Wake up!"

After a few rough shakes, Leo began to stir. "Hmm? Jed?"

"Leo, what the hell happened? Where are the girls?"

"The girls?"

"The girls, Leo!" Jed repeated forcefully. "Where are the girls?"

Leo propped himself onto his elbows and looked around. "Aren't they with you?"

* * *

Between the rocky cliffs that lined Acadia's rugged landscape, a number of secluded coves churned the waters of the Atlantic towards shore. Having been to Acadia many times with her family, Ellie had been swimming in these coves for years.

When she and Mallory dipped their toes into the cool water, she couldn't help but remember all the times she and Liz had done the same. Inevitably, Jed would drag one of them in before she was ready and the other, unwilling to be left out of the chorus of girlish screams and giggles that always erupted from between the soft waves of the ocean, would soon follow.

She remembered the fun they had during those summer swims when they'd all conspire to dunk their father underwater, or the exhilaration she felt in racing her mother to shore when they went out a little further than they should have. And she also remembered Abbey's warning - that when a life guard wasn't on duty, they were forbidden from swimming in the water.

Ellie searched the sandy banks and just as she thought, the life guard chair was empty that day. She pondered turning around, but her nine-year-old impulses, provoked by peer pressure, lured her towards Mallory.

"Come on!" Mallory called out as she jumped into the waves.

Ellie bit down on her lower lip. She knew she'd get in trouble, but hearing Mallory jumping around and laughing the way she was, persuaded her to go forward. She pulled her shirt up over her head and wiggled out of her shorts until her swimsuit was the only thing she was wearing.

She hesitated again when she stepped into the water. "It's kind of cold."

"You'll get used to it," Mallory replied as she ducked underwater to swim deeper.

"I thought you didn't want to get your hair wet." Mallory shrugged. "They'll know we went swimming."

"Oh well. If we're going to do it, we might as well have fun."

The wind was blowing hard that afternoon. It had picked up considerably since the adults left for their hike. Darker clouds began to roll in, casting an ominous shadow over the ocean. While Ellie suspected a storm was headed their way, the thought never swayed Mallory. Fearlessly, she went further and further until all Ellie could see was her head popping out from between the wind-blown whitecaps.

"Mallory!" she screamed when Mallory intentionally lost herself in the waves.

"Yeah?" Mallory laughed. "This is so cool, Ellie! It's like a whirlpool! Swim out farther!"

Ellie hugged the shore instead. Though she wasn't afraid of swimming in the beaches of Acadia, she would never forget the time that Lizzie ventured too far out and had to rely on Jed to help her back. This time, there was no Jed. The more reasonable side of her personality took over and she realized that if she and Mallory got into trouble the way Liz had, there would be no one to help.

"My mom says to stay close to shore," she shouted back to her friend. "I think you should too."

"It's better out here!"

Since Mallory was raised in an apartment building in Chicago, she learned to swim by taking lessons at the YMCA one summer and had only been swimming a handful of times. Ellie noticed this right away. It concerned her at first, the way Mallory had to work just to stay afloat, but it didn't really alarm her until she saw the ten-year-old bobbing aimlessly through the rough water.

"Mallory, come back in." She swam a little closer to her friend. "I think we should go!" She strained to see the top of Mallory's head just barely reaching the surface. "Mallory." She saw a splash of water. And then another. And another. Mallory was struggling against the current. "Mallory!"

* * *

"Ellie? Mallory?"

Jenny and Abbey had put the pieces together and assumed the two girls had ignored their warnings and gone swimming behind their backs. With Jed and Leo behind them, they combed the trail towards Pelican Cove, calling for their daughters.

"Mallory? Ellie?"

Ellie, who was now swimming towards Mallory, turned back when she heard their voices. She furiously swam as fast as she could and as soon as her feet could reach the sand beneath, she dashed up the shore towards her mother.

"Mommy!"

Abbey sped up when she spotted her. "Ellie, thank God!"

Her arms were extended to capture the wet little girl racing over, but Ellie pushed back. Her face was flushed and her breath was ragged. "Mallory needs help!"

Leo ran across the ribbon of sand that spanned the water's edge, still a bit unsteady from his drinking binge. Jed grabbed his arm to hold him back and instantly kicked off his shoes to dive into the waves under the sweeping white caps until he was close enough to see Mallory.

She was still above water, he noted. She had done a good job of floating when she was too tired to wrestle the punishing surf. By the time he reached her, the exhausted little girl collapsed weightlessly into his arms. Her head resting on his shoulder, he made his way back while Jenny and Abbey swam towards them to help. Together, they carried a coughing Mallory to shore where Ellie and Leo stood, speechless.

"She's okay," Jed said to Ellie, staring into the fear that filled his daughter's blue-green eyes. "Your mom's going to take care of her."

He knew Leo was just as scared, but offering words of comfort to him would prove to be more difficult. Still, Jed leaned his hand on Leo's shoulder as Leo kneeled on the ground beside Mallory.

"Mallory..."

Sitting on the other side, Jenny dismissed her husband. "Not now." She turned to address Abbey before Leo could say another word. "We should take her to the hospital."

Abbey stroked the frightened girl's cheek. "Can you talk to me, Sweetie?"

"Uh huh." Mallory's voice trembled and tears pooled in her eyes.

"Does anything hurt?"

"No, not really."

"That's good." The fact that she was able to talk and sit up by herself put Abbey's mind at ease. "Tell me what happened," she said as she continued to examine her.

Mallory shrugged. "I guess I went too far. Ellie told me not to, but I didn't think it was that bad. I thought I could do it."

"It's pretty rough out there, isn't it?"

Mallory nodded. "I didn't think...I thought I was a good enough swimmer."

"I've been fooled by that beautiful water myself. It doesn't look quite so bad until you're caught up in the middle of it."

"It happened to you too?"

"Absolutely. I remember when I was a little older than you are now, I went out quite far, against my better judgment, and one of the life guards had to come out to rescue me."

Abbey's confession took away some of Mallory's embarrassment. With the tenderness she had always used with her own daughters when they were hurt, Abbey ran her hand over Mallory's head, then glanced up at Leo and Jenny.

"She's okay."

"You're sure?" Jenny asked.

Abbey nodded as she helped Mallory stand. "Yeah."

"Good. Then I can kill her with a clear conscience. Get over here." Jenny tugged her daughter's arm until she was close enough to wrap her in a fierce hug. She kissed the top of her head over and over. "You are grounded for life for scaring me like that."

Leo kept his distance. He didn't dare interrupt the mother-daughter reunion, regardless of how badly he wanted to embrace Mallory himself. He stood back, as stoic as could be, an intimate outsider who slipped under the radar, barely acknowledged by anyone but Jed.

It wasn't until they arrived back at their campsite that Leo dared to show his emotions. Just as she walked past him, Leo blocked his daughter's path and hugged her tight, mumbling an apology Mallory didn't even understand. Jenny waited a beat, then separated the pair.

"She needs to change into some dry clothes, Leo," she said.

Leo nodded as he let go.

"I'll help them," Liz offered, guiding both Mallory and Ellie into the tent with Zoey in tow.

"We need to dry you off too." In an effort to give Jenny and Leo some privacy, Abbey took Jed's arm and led him towards their own tent.

Leo didn't move until he was sure they were alone. Once they were, he took a step towards Jenny. "Jenny, I ca..."

His words tapered off, cut short by a blistering slap right across his face. It stung his cheek, shocked his soul, and rendered him motionless for the next several minutes. Jenny had been angry before, but she had never expressed that anger physically and as he got a good look into his wife's unforgiving eyes, he realized just how much trouble he was in.

She wasn't remorseful or apologetic. She wasn't ashamed of her actions. In fact, there was a second or two when Leo thought she might strike again. His own hand guarded his cheek while he waited to see what she would do next.

"You were supposed to be watching them!" she yelled at him. "She could have drowned out there, Leo!"

"I'm sorry...Jenn, I'm so, so sorry. You know I would never hurt Mallory."

"Sorry doesn't cut it this time."

"Fine. What can I say? Tell me what to say and I'll say it. Tell me what to do and I'll do it. Anything."

"How could you do this? After everything we've been through, after all the years your drinking stole from us, how could you do this to us again?"

"I'm not doing it. I'm not. It's not like before." She scoffed. Leo approached her more stubbornly this time, unafraid of another slap. "Jenny, I'm serious."

He reached for her arm, but she shrugged out of his hold. "Don't touch me!"

Mentally wounded by her rejection, Leo let go. "It was a one-time thing. I slipped, okay? It's over. It's done. I swear on my life. I swear it on our marriage. I'm through. It won't happen again."

"Yes, it will."

"No." He shook his head. "It won't. Just give me a chance."

"I've given you more chances than I can count! I can't give you any more chances. I don't have it in me."

"Yes, you do. You do. I know you do."

"It will happen again."

"No."

"Yes, and when it does, I pray you have someone there to pick up the pieces because I can't."

"What do you mean you can't?"

"I mean I'm the one who's done."

"What does that mean?"

His heart was beating so hard, he was sweating now, terrified of what she was about to say. He had never seen her like this. Jenny had threatened him before, but this time, there was something different. Her words were sharper, her resolve stronger. Leo held his breath the entire time he waited for her response.

Meanwhile, inside their tent, Jed was grounded to one place as Abbey helped him strip out of his wet shirt. They tried to tune out the fight going on between Leo and Jenny, but it proved to be a fruitless effort.

"It's not ALL his fault, you know," Jed finally said during a lull in the conversation outside.

"Jed." Abbey shook her head disapprovingly.

"No, listen to me. I'm not saying he's blameless here. What he did was wrong, but we told Mallory and Ellie not to go swimming. You specifically told Ellie she wasn't allowed to go. She did it anyway."

"I know that and believe me, Ellie won't see the outside of our house for the rest of the year because of it. But we trusted Leo to watch them. He told us he would. Don't make excuses for him."

"I'm not."

"He needs help, Jed. How much clearer does it need to be?"

"I know," Jed snapped. "If anything had happened out there...God, Abbey...if we hadn't shown up when we did."

"Let's just be grateful that we did."

He crossed in front of her and turned his back. "I know that Leo needs help. But until he knows it, am I supposed to cut him out of my life?"

"No." Abbey walked up behind him and rested her chin on his shoulder. "He's sick, Jed. Alcoholism IS a disease. It is. That's not just lip service. Leo has a disease and as his oldest friend, you're supposed to help him through it the same way you would if he had cancer and refused treatment. You're supposed to convince him he needs rehab the same way you would convince him to say yes to chemotherapy."

"I've told him before..."

"Yes, and he gives you a story and you buy it and move on."

He turned to face her. "Is that what you think? You think I just buy his lies? I don't buy it. I want to. I've always wanted to, but I'm not an idiot, Abbey. I know he has a problem."

"Then stop denying it - to him and to yourself."

Outside, a desperate Leo held on to Jenny's arms as he pleaded with her to look him in the eyes. He thought if she did that, if she saw the torment smoldering inside him, she would change her mind. She would have to, he reasoned. She couldn't walk away.

"Tell me you're not serious, Jenn."

"I told you not to touch me," she said, still avoiding his gaze.

"Jenny."

"I can't, Leo! The late nights at the office, the lying, the hiding, all the stuff you did all the other times we went through this...I learned to live with it. I got used to expecting you to fall off the wagon no matter how hard you tried to stay sober. And then we went to my uncle's clinic in Switzerland and you changed. You really changed. And I thought 'this time, he's going to make it,' 'this time, we're finally past it.'"

"We ARE past it."

"NO! We're not." She rubbed her fingers against her forehead. "It's been two years and now, I've got someone else to think about. Mallory's not a baby anymore. She understands. Doing it to me is one thing. Doing it to her is another. I won't stand by while you break her heart over and over and over and over and over again."

"I won't."

"Words are cheap, Leo. You want to prove it to me? Enter rehab. A real rehab center this time right here in the United States. Inpatient. To hell with who finds out or who starts talking. If you want us to have a chance, then enter a rehabilitation center. If you don't, our marriage is over."

She returned his stare this time. For two long minutes, their eyes locked and then, to Leo's horror, Jenny still walked away. Leo's face fell in her shadow.

Jed waited until she was gone before he came out of the tent. "Leo..."

Leo raised his hand to cut him off. "Thank you for jumping in after Mallory."

"Leo..." Jed began again.

And again, Leo interjected. "She's usually a pretty good swimmer - at least when it comes to swimming in lakes and stuff. She's just not used to the water out here. I guess she didn't realize how rough it could get."

"She's safe now."

"Thanks to you. I was going to go in after her, but you beat me to it." He intentionally avoided stating the obvious - Jed jumped in because Leo was intoxicated.

"Leo, look..."

"I still can't believe they snuck off like that, even after Jenny and Abbey told them they couldn't go. Mallory's pulled this kind of thing before, but Ellie's usually pretty well behaved, right? She listens to what you guys tell her?"

"LEO!" Leo stood shell-shocked by Jed's outburst. Jed took a few breaths and continued in a calmer tone. "I overheard what Jenny said. I wasn't trying to eavesdrop, but I did hear."

"Trust me when I tell you there's nothing to worry about. Jenny's threatened divorce before. She always comes around after she's cooled off."

"I think she's right this time."

The look on Jed's face made Leo nervous. He wasn't playing games. His lips were pursed together and he stuffed his hands in his pockets as he moved towards the picnic table to lean against the bench.

"I brought you here," Jed started, taking his hands out of his pockets to fold his arms over his chest. "I knew you hated to go camping and still, I insisted we go. I told Jenny about the pact between me and Abbey...about the smoking. I knew she'd be on your case to get you to quit too, and still, I told her. I took away your cigarettes, I made you go fishing..."

"Yeah, you did," Leo mumbled.

"And when I saw you standing there over Mallory, wanting to touch her...to console her, I blamed myself for pushing you so hard to do things you didn't want to do. Maybe if we weren't here, you wouldn't have needed a drink. Maybe if you weren't going through nicotine withdrawal, you wouldn't have done what you did."

"You believe that?"

"I did. But I was wrong, Leo, because regardless of all those other things, you would have still found a way to drink today."

"That's a tad presumptuous, isn't it?"

"It's been going on for a while, hasn't it? It wasn't just a one-time thing, like you told Jenny. You wouldn't have poured your scotch into a masquerade binocular flask unless you knew you couldn't resist temptation and you knew that because it's happened before. Recently. You haven't been resisting temptation, have you?"

"I don't need another lecture, Jed. Jenny's already taken care of that."

"That wasn't a lecture she gave you and I'm not giving you one either. I want to help you."

"What if I don't need help?"

"Then help me understand."

"Understand what?"

"How someone I thought I knew so well can surprise me the way you did today. I defended you to Jenny and to Abbey for the past ten years, telling them you don't have a problem with booze because you looked me in the eye and you told me you didn't. I believed you. And, finally, when neither one of us could deny it any longer, you and Jenny went away so you could get help. I gave you your privacy. I didn't pry. I left you alone, knowing the Leo I knew was strong enough to beat this. I thought you had. Now that it's painfully clear you haven't, you're refusing my help? You're refusing to admit something isn't right? You're willing to lose your wife over it? I can't imagine anything more important than my family. You have a wife who's crazy about you, you have a loving daughter…and you're jeopardizing both...for what? I'm sorry, but I don't understand."

Leo allowed several seconds of silence before he replied. "I've had about as much 'fun' as I can take for one weekend, so if we're done, maybe we should all go home."

"We're not done."

"Jed..."

"We're not done, Leo!" He raised his voice this time. "You put my daughter in danger right along with yours. We're far from done."

That's when Leo saw it, the bubbling anger shielded by an umbrella of concern. Drained and unable to defend himself any more than he already had with Jenny, Leo gave Jed a parting glance, then turned and walked away.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 4

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: After Leo drunk himself to sleep, Ellie and Mallory snuck off from camp to go swimming in the ocean against their mothers' wishes; Jed jumped in to rescue Mallory when she struggled against the waves; Jenny gave Leo an ultimatum - his drinking or their marriage; Jed tried to get through to Leo; Jed's campaign director, Derek, and his speechwriter, Larry, were concerned about his chances of winning his election (Chapter 1); Jed and Abbey agreed to a plea bargain for the man who attacked Abbey (Chapter 21 of Phoenix)

Summary: Derek and Jed clash over the campaign; a Letter to the Editor of the local paper angers Jed; Jed and Abbey get surprising news about Zoey

* * *

"She'll say no," Liz warned as she buttered a piece of toast at the Bartlet breakfast table.

"Why?" Zoey replied.

"She just will."

Unwilling to give up, Ellie looked to her older sister, eyes pleading as if it was Liz's decision. "What if I wash the dishes for a whole month? And take out the trash and set the table and clean my room?"

"Nope."

Zoey climbed up on her knees in her chair. "I'll clean my room too!"

"I'm telling you guys," Liz cautioned. "She's still going to say no. I'm older. I've been here longer than either of you. I know her better and trust me, when Mom makes up her mind about something, that's it. It's done."

"I can't even try?"

"Your best bet is to talk to Dad."

"Even if he says yes, it won't matter if she still says no."

"Ask him to talk to her."

"Will he?"

"Sure, if you win him over to your side. Just tilt your head and give him the saddest expression you can. He'll melt." Liz had spent years tugging her father's heartstrings to get out of trouble.

"Are you sure?"

"It's worked for me." She looked behind her and straightened her posture when she heard footsteps turning the corner. "SHHHH!"

Jed's gaze fell suspiciously to his daughters as he entered the kitchen. "What are you three plotting?" he asked teasingly.

"Nothing," Lizzie answered sweetly.

Jed didn't buy it. If there was one thing he had learned over the years, it was that secrets exchanged between his girls were usually wrought with schemes. He took his seat at the table. His eyes narrowed until they rested on his youngest daughter. "Zoey?"

Without hesitation, Zoey blurted out, "Ellie wants to go skating tonight."

"ZOEY!" Ellie and Liz shouted at their sister.

"But he asked me," she said, her brows creased with confusion.

"Your school's skating party is tonight." Jed addressed Ellie, who nodded her confirmation. "And you want to go?" Another nod. "You don't think there should be any consequences for going swimming on Saturday after your mom told you not to?" Ellie shrugged this time. "You know what I think?"

"What?"

"I think your mom is still angry that you disobeyed her and if I were you, I wouldn't push her today."

"You wouldn't?"

He shook his head. "You're going to have to sit this one out, Kiddo."

"Even if I say I'm sorry?"

"You already did that."

"I'll do it again."

"I don't think it'll make a difference as far as the skating party's concerned."

"Told you," Liz whispered. "But you can talk to her, right, Dad?"

"Actually, your mother and I are together on this one. Sorry, Ellie, but the answer is no." A saddened Ellie propped her chin down on her wrists. "There'll be other skating parties."

"Not like tonight."

She accepted defeat more graciously than Jed thought she would. He gave her a sympathetic glance as he stood to reach for the coffee pot so he could pour himself a steamy cup. Across from him, Abbey was working on the countertop, bagging Liz and Ellie's lunches with the phone glued to her ear. Jed walked over and handed her a mug just like his. She mouthed a 'thank you' to her husband, then replied into the receiver.

"Kiss Mallory for me and call me in a few days..."

Just as he suspected, she was talking to Jenny. He stood beside her, trying to decipher clues in her tone as he waited for her to finish.

"Okay...I will...take care, Jenny...bye."

"How is she?" he asked when she hung up.

"Better I guess. She and Mallory are staying at her mother's for the next few days."

"Leo?"

Jed was almost scared to ask about Leo. After Leo walked away from their conversation at Acadia, he became so withdrawn that he barely uttered a full sentence all the way back to Manchester. He apologized profusely to both Jed and Abbey at the airport, but the way he looked at Jed convinced everyone the subject of his drinking was off limits.

Jed kicked himself for not forcing the issue, for letting him leave without another word. It was better to wait, Abbey had told him. She and Jenny had planned something bigger than a debate about his drinking, something that they all hoped would wake Leo up once and for all. So Jed did as they said and let it go - for now.

"He's sober," Abbey assured him. "At least for the time being. Jenny hasn't told him we're flying out."

"That's probably best."

"Mom, are they gonna get divorced?"

"No, Lizzie." Jed answered so quickly that it surprised Abbey. He wasn't certain, she figured. He was just being optimistic.

She chose to let him have the final word on that and when he grabbed an apple out of the fruit bowl, she changed the subject. "I made breakfast."

"I can't. I have to go to the office."

"Jed, we're meeting..."

"Meeting with Zoey's teacher, I know. I'll meet you there."

"Don't be late, okay? I have to be at the hospital at ten."

"That's right, you're talking to that lawyer today."

"Yeah."

"You sure you don't want me there?"

"I'm sure." She smiled. "But thank you for asking."

He didn't understand, but he accepted that the malpractice suit was something Abbey wanted to handle on her own. She resisted his offer help, just as she had ever since the day she was served. It was up to her, he conceded as he gave her a kiss and grabbed his briefcase on his way out the door.

* * *

"The Dog?" Jed walked through the cramped corridors of his campaign office, Derek and Larry trailing closely behind. "What self-respecting man would allow himself to be called The Dog?"

"Dawg," Larry corrected. "Dawg with an "a-w," not an "o."

"And he is actually a she," Derek added. "It's a woman."

"Even worse."

"She likes the nickname, Jed. She says she earned it. The media regards her as someone who chews them up and spits them out."

"And you want to hire her?"

"To be press secretary, yes."

"Larry's been handling the press."

"We're no longer dealing with the primary here. We're going into a general election that's already attracted a hell of a lot of press, including the sticky situation we're dealing with now. We need the help."

"What kind of sticky situation?"

"We'll get to that in a minute. Do you want to expand on what happened over the weekend?"

"Excuse me?"

"The weekend...at Acadia. Jack said you rescued your friend's daughter in a swimming accident."

"There was no accident and my brother's got a big mouth."

"So are there pictures?"

"No." Astonished at Derek's implication, Jed dismissed him. "We are not going to use this weekend's incident...note by the way, I said incident, not accident...anyway, we're not going to use it to get ahead in the campaign, Derek. Forget it."

"It might help generate a little free media."

"It was a personal matter."

"Nothing's personal in politics."

"Well this is."

"What happened?"

"Nothing happened." And that was that. His tone left no room for further discussion. "By the way, just so I don't forget to tell you, sometime in the next few weeks, I'm going out of town for a day or two."

"I hope you're about to tell me it's related to the campaign."

"It's not. It's family business out in Chicago and it can't wait."

"Jed..."

"Derek, I know what you're going to say, but this is an emergency."

"An emergency that's not happening for a few weeks?"

"Right."

Derek stopped dead in his tracks. Larry and Jed made it a few steps ahead, then turned back to see him standing behind them. "For crying out loud, Jed...when are you going to get serious about this race?"

"I am serious about this race, but like I said, something's come up that requires my attention in Chicago. There's no way around it."

"And like I said a thousand times before, if you want to win this damn election, then you're going to have to be here!"

"I will be, Derek! Ninety-nine percent of the time, I belong to you. But this is that one percent that you don't get. This isn't negotiable."

"I didn't come all the way up to New Hampshire so I could work for someone who doesn't give a damn if he wins or loses."

"If that's what you think then maybe it's time for you to get out while you still can."

"Hold on a second!" Always the peacemaker in the trio, Larry intervened. "No one's going anywhere. We'll work around it, Jed."

Jed stared at his disgruntled campaign director. In a more conciliatory way, he approached Derek. "I'll be gone two days, max. I'll try to make it one."

"Fine. Fine. Go, but don't expect there to be a campaign when you get back."

"Are you threatening me?"

"No," Derek replied. "I'm telling you that we're hiring a press secretary because we need help. This campaign is falling apart while you're off camping with your family or jetting to Chicago for a weekend."

The three men continued their stride. Derek waited until they rounded the corner to swagger into a small office in the back. He closed the door, then took a copy of that morning's newspaper from Larry and threw it down on the desk right in front of Jed.

"What the hell?" Jed furrowed his brows angrily as he scanned the chilling headline that gave it all away.

The blistering letter to the editor exposed him to emotions buried so deep inside that he didn't expect them to surface ever again - painful emotions, laced with feelings that were just as hard and jagged as they had been five years earlier.

Frank Crews, the author wrote, was a poster boy of sorts, proof of Jed Bartlet's stand on crime. After his violent attack on Abbey, Crews had escaped the full brunt of the law and with Jed's blessing, he faced a minimal sentence. The words stirred something in Jed. His face paled, his fingers twitched, and without reservation, he threw the uncrumpled paper across the room.

"Who wrote that garbage?"

"Someone who was familiar with the case," Larry answered. "We don't know who - yet. Did Abbey's attack get any TV play initially?"

"Who the hell knows. And what difference does it make? All anyone had to do was look up the court documents."

Derek's attitude was stern, much sterner than Larry's. "It makes a difference because we already have the court records. We got those way back when you told us about the attack and since there was a plea bargain, the information is limited. What we need to know now is if there's anything else out there with details of the story."

"I don't know."

"How could you not know?"

Jed glared at the man. "I was too busy tending to my battered wife and my two scared and confused little girls to be monitoring the 6:00 news every night. Did anyone shove a camera in my face? No. But I have no idea what the hell was reported about the crime."

"Look, it doesn't matter," Larry insisted. "Even if it didn't end up on television, it's a sure bet it was mentioned in the local paper in Hanover. A doctor is abducted and attacked in the hospital parking lot, plus she's the wife of a state representative. It's not like that kind of thing happens every day in that town. At the very least, there was a blurb from the court docket in the crime report."

"Yeah, but Derek's right. Crews took a plea bargain. Some of the stuff mentioned in that letter in today's paper was never revealed in court. For anyone to know about what Abbey really went through and then make the connection with Frank Crews...they would have had to follow the whole thing. Closely." The thought that someone out there knew so much about the darkest period in his and Abbey's life gave him the creeps.

"It could be someone who knew you guys. An old neighbor maybe? Maybe someone from the courthouse? Crews gets out this year, right?"

"After New Year's." Up until the time the words left his mouth, Jed hadn't realized how soon Crews's sentence was up.

Larry could see his discomfort. Whether it was because he was faced with Frank Crews's impending release from prison or that morning's editorial, he didn't know. "We can work around this, Jed. We can spin it."

"Yeah."

"The point is to stop it from happening again. This one was our fault for not gathering all the clippings in the first place so we could at least anticipate it."

"We couldn't see this coming? At all?" Jed questioned.

"It was our mistake. We have a skeleton staff running around, each person trying to do the job of ten others. Things get overlooked."

"I told you," Derek said to Jed. "We need help."

* * *

Abbey sat at the edge of her chair. Though she opened her mouth several times to say something, to give a voice to all the questions running rampant in her mind, she found herself speechless each and every time. She turned then. As the door opened and an apologetic Jed barreled in, she stood to greet him.

"I know I'm late. I'm sorry."

"Hello, Dr. Bartlet."

Jed shook the hand of the woman behind the desk. "Please, call me Jed."

Abbey took her husband's arm and led him back to take a seat beside her. She turned her attention back to the woman. "Amanda was just saying..."

She paused, so Amanda continued. "I was saying that I'm concerned about Zoey's behavior in school."

"Her behavior?" Jed asked.

"Yes. Her attention span isn't what it should be, she rarely makes eye contact with me or the other teachers, and she gets extremely frustrated when she can't do things the other kids can do."

"That sounds like typical four-year-old behavior to me. It's all part of growing up."

"She also gets upset quite easily."

"Yeah, she certainly inherited her mother's temper." He looked to Abbey, chuckling slightly at first, but when Abbey stared straight ahead without a response, his smile faded.

"She's aggressive towards her peers. She tends to act out, especially when others are better at certain things."

"What do you mean aggressive?" He was a bit more serious now.

"I mean she snatches things away from the other children, she shoves them when they're in her way, not violently, mind you, but she does often get annoyed with her classmates."

"Don't a lot of kids at that age?"

"Yes, but Zoey's a special case."

"I don't get it. What do you mean?"

"She was born prematurely, Jed," Abbey said softly. "It's different."

"How is it different?" His wife was unresponsive to the question, so he looked back at Amanda.

"Preemies have special circumstances."

"I know that preemies are at risk for developmental problems, but Zoey's on par with where her sisters were at that age. She's smart, she's articulate. So what if she gets frustrated now and then? So what if she has a bit of a temper? So does my oldest daughter, Elizabeth. She turned out to be perfectly normal. Now don't get me wrong, there's no excuse for Zoey's behavior towards the other children and we'll deal with that. It won't go ignored, not in our house. But I just don't see how this has anything to do with Zoey being born when she was."

"You said yourself that preemies are at risk for developmental problems."

"Yes. We know that. That's why she's never missed a doctor's appointment. From the day she was born, she's been watched and analyzed and tested. Every doctor says she's exactly where she needs to be."

"Did you ever get an opinion as to her emotional development?"

"Isn't that part of the routine examinations?"

"Not always. Doctors tend to check for motor skills, hearing and vision problems, things that one can detect physically, but often, emotional difficulties aren't explored as rigorously as they should be."

"Well, I think Zoey's fine. She needs to learn to share and she needs to control her frustration, but I don't think she has any kind of emotional difficulties." He looked to Abbey. "Do you?"

She didn't answer. In fact, Abbey never even acknowledged the question. She was a spectator now, listening quietly to the dialogue between Jed and Amanda without adding her own thoughts or opinions. It was like she was in a daze.

"Dr. Bartlet...Jed...your daughter Zoey is four, but her tantrums are more like the tantrums of a two-year-old."

"That's our fault for spoiling her." He wouldn't dare have anyone think a negative thought about Zoey. "We'll work on that."

"I don't think it's that she's spoiled. There are other areas of concern."

"Like what?"

"By this age, kids should be able to focus more than Zoey can. they should be able to do simple tasks, like tying their shoes or zipping the zipper on their jeans. They should also be a little less selfish when it comes to sharing and playing with others."

"Not all kids develop at the same pace."

"No, they don't, but as I said, this is a little different. She's going to be five in December and that's why we need to do something. If we don't step in right now, I'm afraid Zoey might not be ready for kindergarten next year."

"Not ready for kindergarten?" He scoffed. "Come on, all she's going to be doing is finger-painting all day."

"And learning to socialize with others in an appropriate manner. She's going to start reading and writing soon and if she can't keep up with her classmates..."

"She CAN keep up with her classmates."

Amanda reached for a wrinkled drawing she had on her desk. She handed it to Jed. "Take a look at this."

"What is it?" The black, pink, and purple lines began at the margin, but the streaks overlapped, leading to a line of scribbles across the other edge. "Is it Zoey's?"

"It was supposed to be a rainbow."

"I think she did a great job," he said as only a proud father could. He couldn't help but laugh though. Even he had to admit it looked nothing like a traditional rainbow "She's creative, that's for sure."

"When she realized hers wasn't like the others, that her colors were randomly put together and that she hadn't used the colors we had just gone over as being part of a rainbow, she got upset. Her lines weren't curved the way they were supposed to be. Her picture wasn't like everyone else's. So, she scribbled out the rest, balled it up, and threw it across the room."

"So she can't draw a rainbow. So what?"

"She confused the colors in her head, which she tends to do often. When I tell her to use a red crayon, she looks at me and smiles as if she can't identify what red is."

"All right. We'll work with her. Colors aren't hard to learn."

"It's not just that. It's what she did with the drawing when she realized it was different."

"She threw it away, that's what you're concerned about. I do that sometimes. Hell, about an hour ago, I threw a newspaper article across the room. It's not model behavior to be passing on to my kids, but at least we know where she gets it from."

His reluctance was strong. Amanda drew in a deep breath, then told him, "I'm not saying that your daughter is abnormal. What I'm saying is this kind of thing concerns me and given her history, we need to keep an eye on her. I understand this is a shock to you and that you're not ready to face the possibility that this could be a problem, but I think even Zoey feels that something is wrong."

"She's four. How would she know that anything is wrong...unless you've been filling her head with this stuff?"

"No, I wouldn't do that."

"Then I don't understand. Zoey is a happy child. She's never given us any indication that she feels there's something wrong."

"Whenever Zoey acts out, whenever she can't do something like tie her shoe laces or draw a rainbow, after her tantrum, she puts her head down and she cries. She gives up on herself. Instead of trying again, she gets mad, not only at her friends, but at herself. She knows she's behind the others, she knows that she can't do some of the things they can."

"All I'm hearing is a lot of what she can't do. What about all the things she can do?"

"I try to emphasize that to her when she's upset."

"And?"

"And it upsets her more. All she sees is all the other drawings in the classroom, all the other kids putting together puzzle pieces and coloring inside the lines. I've only been her teacher for a few weeks, but I suspect what's frustrating her the most is that she doesn't understand how they know what to do and when to do it and she doesn't."

"We'll teach her all those things. I'll teach her myself."

"I have no doubt you will, but if something is wrong, we need to monitor it now. I'm not telling you this because I'm trying to invent a problem where one doesn't exist. I'm telling you because I see a sweet, bright little girl who feels left out because, I believe, she's suffering from developmental delays that need to be addressed."

"Excuse me. I'll be back." Unable to listen any longer, Abbey scrambled to her feet and rushed out the door.

"Abbey."

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 5

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Zoey's teacher, Amanda, told Jed and Abbey that Zoey was showing signs of developmental delays

Summary: Jed tries to convince Abbey that Amanda is wrong

* * *

"Abbey."

Jed approached her gingerly, as if afraid he would startle her. She was leaning forward on a white wooden fence, barely moving, even when a gust of wind swept her hair right into her face. He looked straight ahead in the same direction her eyes were captivatingly pointed - the playground.

"I just wanted to see Zoey."

Jed squared his shoulders and proudly joined her at the fence to get a closer look. Zoey was climbing the monkey bars faster than any of her classmates. "She's pretty daring out there, isn't she?"

"She is," Abbey agreed.

"A normal, healthy child. She's perfect. We'll have to address the way she treats her classmates, but aside from that, I think it's fairly obvious Amanda is wrong."

Abbey's stoic expression changed in the next few seconds. Concern took over as she watched Zoey stop unexpectedly. "She's hesitating."

"What?"

"On the monkey bars. She's hesitating."

"She just stopped for a minute. She's probably just tired."

To him, that was the most likely explanation. While Jed watched his daughter without the baggage of past problems clouding his thoughts, Abbey's mind flashed back to an earlier time. She remembered the day of Zoey's birth. The anxiety. The pain. The fear that she was being born months before her due date. She remembered that Zoey could barely let out a faint cry when she first entered the world. Her tiny lungs weren't developed enough to allow for a healthy wail.

Her arms stretched to take her newborn daughter, Abbey sobbed helplessly as Zoey was whisked out of the delivery room before she even had a chance to hold her. She passed out then and when she awoke, Jed took her to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit where she saw her baby girl lying in a heated bed, so sick and so weak, weighing a mere 2 pounds, 4 ounces as she teetered between life and death.

"Children come from God," Jed had told her that day at the NICU in an effort to convince her to stay true to her faith, to believe from the innermost depths of her heart that their baby would survive. "And if it were up to Him, he'd give her eternal life - Zoe aionios."

"That's what that means?" Abbey had asked. "Zoe aionios, it means eternal life?"

"Yeah."

"Then that's what we have to name her. Zoey. It's gotta be Zoey."

Little Zoey kept Abbey chained to the NICU for months and then, despite the odds, she grew stronger and stronger. So strong, in fact, that doctors eventually released her from the hospital with a clean bill of health and supported that claim at numerous medical visits throughout the next several years. There was no indication that anything was wrong, no sign that the youngest member of the Bartlet clan might forever suffer the consequences of her premature birth - until now.

Could she have really been blind to a developmental delay, Abbey wondered. Could Zoey really be having problems relating to other kids and learning things that she and Jed thought she already knew?

Everything said during the meeting with Amanda was a jumbled mess in her mind that September afternoon. As she gazed out at her daughter standing in the middle of the monkey bars, she searched her mind for clues to discount Amanda's concerns. But she couldn't find a single one.

Zoey was wearing a purple sweater and her favorite blue jeans, the ones that had a tiny purple heart sewn at the knee. Her fine strawberry blond hair was pinned on the sides with miniature purple barrettes. She looked so little. She was certainly shorter than the other kids, a fact that she and Jed always dismissed because of their own heights. Besides, Zoey's large and spunky personality usually made them forget her petite stature, as did that fearless nature of hers.

But on that day, Zoey was anything but fearless. She was scared. Her friend Cindy climbed up a step above her and urged Zoey along. Zoey held her ground, staring up at Cindy and biting down on her lower lip.

"I should help her." Abbey took a step forward.

"Help her with what?" Jed grabbed her hand to stop her. "She's fine."

"She's hesitating. Why isn't she going further? I think she's scared."

"She's not scared. She's just cautious, which is a good thing." Slowly, Zoey took a step up and joined her friend at the top. Jed smiled as the two girls sat down on the frame and giggled about whatever it was that Cindy whispered into Zoey's ear. "See?"

"You were right," Abbey said as she stuffed her hands into the pockets of her leather jacket.

"Look, Abbey, don't let what Amanda said get to you. Don't let her put these ideas in your head and persuade you that every single thing Zoey does needs to be examined."

"I'm not, Jed. I was just wondering why she stopped, that's all."

"So what if she stopped?" he asked defensively. "It doesn't mean anything."

"All right, fine. It doesn't mean anything. I already said you were right."

"You don't believe what Amanda said, do you? You know it's just rubbish?"

"I don't think we should have this conversation right now." Abbey took a few steps away from him.

"Why?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"Because I'm not as sure as you are!" she said as she spun around on him.

It didn't shock him to hear her admission, but it stung him to hear the uncertainty in Abbey's voice. When she tried to turn back towards the playground, he put his hands on her arms to keep her from doing so. "No one knows our kids better than we do."

She was facing him now. "Sometimes parents can't see these things. Zoey interacts with us the same way Liz and Ellie did at her age, but we're not there with her in school. There are different standards, different boundaries."

"I don't buy it."

Abbey pulled out of his hold and crossed in front of him. "That she might be having some problems?"

"That's right. I don't buy it. How old is Amanda, would you say? Twenty-three, twenty-four, max?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"How many years has she done this? How many kids has she seen? What's her frame of reference?"

"She's a teacher."

"So am I."

"Jed, be serious. You've never worked with pre-schoolers."

"I worked with Ellie and Lizzie when they were pre-schoolers. Zoey is as normal as they are. But fine, you want to talk about professionals, what about you? You're a doctor. You're telling me that if Zoey wasn't normal, you wouldn't know it? You wouldn't have detected it years ago?"

"Not necessarily and stop saying that."

"What?"

"Normal. Stop saying it."

"I meant normal in the vaguest sense of the word...as in, the norm, the average, like other kids."

"I know what you meant."

He moved to her side, both of them staring out at Zoey once again. "It's a silly thing to say anyway. What is normal when it comes to learning? Is there such a thing when we all process information differently? I mean, look at how vastly different Lizzie and Ellie are when it comes to learning. Lizzie has to see it, she has to feel it. She needs the hands-on. Ellie learns by reading about it."

"And Zoey..."

"Zoey learns a different way. We just haven't figured out what it is yet."

"No, we haven't." She paused for a beat. "I want to have her tested."

"Why are you trying to upset yourself? Zoey is fine and in time, we'll know that for sure. Sooner or later, her entire personality will come shining through and you'll see that the stuff we were told today...you'll see it was all a bunch of bull, Abbey."

"If it is, then great! But I want to have her tested to be sure."

Jed rested his arms on the railing, leaning in the way Abbey was. "If that's what it's going to take to put your mind at ease, have her tested with my blessing. But I still contend that we would know if something was the matter with Zoey."

"I hope that's true."

He glanced down at his watch. "I have to go. They've got me on back-to-back campaign events today and scheduling's been on my ass about being late."

"Okay."

"Are you coming?"

"I'm going to stay here a few more minutes."

"You have to get to work," Jed reminded her. "You have an appointment with that malpractice lawyer this morning."

"I know. I just want to stay here for a few more minutes."

He cupped her chin and tilted her head towards him. "Everything is okay. You'll see," he said just before he gave her a kiss on the lips. "I'll see you tonight."

* * *

It was after ten by the time Abbey made it to her office. Though she was holding her hand, Zoey was practically skipping at her side trying to keep up with the long strides they took down the hall.

"Janice, I know I'm late," Abbey said, rushing into the suite. "Are they here?"

"They're waiting in your office." Janice walked around from the receptionist's desk and kneeled in front of Zoey. "How are you today, Miss Zoey?"

"Fine!" Zoey declared, letting go of Abbey's hand to hug the woman.

"I've got something for you." Janice reached behind her to hand Zoey a lollipop. Knowing Abbey's rules, Zoey looked up at her before she reached for the candy.

Abbey nodded her approval. "Go ahead."

Zoey took the lollipop and without being prompted, she said, "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Janice replied.

Abbey nervously looked at the clock then gestured towards the hyper four-year-old. "Janice, will you do me a big favor?"

"Of course. Hey, Zoey, you wanna help me put stickers on some charts?" Zoey nodded enthusiastically as Janice led her behind the desk.

"Thanks. I owe you."

"No problem. You know I love your girls." Janice helped Zoey onto a chair and put a row of colored stickers in front of her. "We're going to put red stickers on these and blue stickers on those over there. Let's start with red, okay?"

As Abbey wrapped her hand around the knob to open the door to her office, she heard Janice's voice. She looked over her shoulder to see Zoey extend her hand towards the batch of red stickers, then pause as if she was confused.

"You were right, Sweetheart," Abbey called out to her. "Those right there are red."

Amanda was right, about that at least. Zoey was having trouble identifying colors, even though she had been coloring from the time she was strong enough to hold a crayon.

Abbey slid all the red stickers towards her daughter and walked around to whisper to Janice. "We're working on colors. She hasn't mastered it yet."

"Oh, that's okay. We're going to do this together, aren't we, Zo?" Janice pulled up her chair and sat down beside Zoey.

"Thanks." Abbey started towards her office again, turning back to get one more look at Zoey and Janice before she went in, apprehensively.

* * *

"Lizzie!" Jed bellowed as he barged in through the front door and stood at the foot of the stairs.

"I'm coming!"

"Hurry up! I have to get back to work." He glanced up at Abbey making her way down. "I thought you were at the hospital."

"Didn't you see my car out front?"

He turned his head to look out the window behind him, then turned back to Abbey. "No, I guess I wasn't paying attention."

"That's because you've been on the run all day. Have you even had lunch today?"

"How'd it go with the lawyer?"

He ignored her question, but Abbey let it slide. "It went fine."

"Just fine?"

"I'll give you all the gory details later."

"Okay. But now you can tell me why you're home."

"I decided to take the rest of the day off."

"Is something wrong?"

"No. Why?"

"You never take a day off. Is this about Zoey?"

"No."

"Abbey?" An unconvinced Jed quizzed her.

"It's not, Jed. I just wanted to spend some time with the girls."

"Okay."

"And I wanted to tag along to see Lizzie get her license."

"That's going to be a frightening sight, enough to scar me for life."

"Leave me alone, Dad. I'm a fantastic driver!" Liz bounded down the steps, Ellie and Zoey trailing right behind her. "Right, Mom?"

"She did a pretty good job on the way home from school today," Abbey agreed.

"Ah, she hoodwinked you," Jed said. "She's a master at that."

"She gets that from her father," Abbey replied.

"How do I look?" the teen asked her mother and sisters.

"Great, Lizzie!" Ellie and Zoey both answered.

"What difference does it make?" Confused, Jed backed away as four sets of eyes pierced him for asking such a question.

"It makes all the difference in the world, Dad! I'm going to have this license - and this picture - for the next five years. I want to look good."

"It's a driver's license, not a photo shoot for..." he looked to his wife.

"Vogue Magazine." Abbey chuckled.

"Vogue Magazine," Jed repeated.

"I don't care. I want to have a good picture, like Mom's."

"You look lovely, Lizzie," Abbey assured her.

"And I predict you're going to have just as great a picture as your mother." Jed walked behind her so he could usher her out the door. "But we'll never know for sure if we don't leave right now."

"Maybe I should tease my hair a little more."

"It'll be too big to fit in the car. We'll have to strap poor Zoey to the roof."

"Are you going to make fun of me all day?"

"It's how I relieve my stress," Jed teased.

"I get to drive home, right?"

"Sure, after I call the mayor and have him clear the streets."

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 6

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Derek told Jed he wanted to hire a new press secretary (chapter 4); Jed tried to convince Abbey that Zoey's teacher, Amanda, was wrong about Zoey having developmental delays due to her premature birth; the whole family took Lizzie to get her driver's license

Summary: Jed watches the new press secretary in action; Abbey is concerned about an incident at a campaign event; Jed misses an important engagement

* * *

"By contrast, Jed Bartlet proved his devotion for our community and his loyalty towards the people of this district during his time in the State House."

Christine Price paced as she dictated the words. Her assistant, Gemma, sat at a manual typewriter and typed each and every word, sometimes before it even left Christine's mouth, a testament to the long-standing relationship between the two. Jed leaned on the back of a chair beside Derek and watched the two women collaborate.

Derek had promised him Christine was the answer to their communications woes when he hired her a couple of weeks earlier. Right away, Jed saw the qualities the staff had been raving about - that strong, brazen attitude trimmed with just a touch of charismatic finesse that made her a trusted spokesperson to the public and a no-nonsense pit bull to the media.

At times, he struggled to understand her, unsuccessfully. It was partly because he was new to this side of campaigning and partly, he assumed, because Christine Price was truly a complicated professional.

"It's obvious to me that Mr. Bartlet works for..." Christine continued

"Doctor Bartlet," Derek interjected.

"This guy's an average citizen, an amateur. It's okay for him to be less formal."

"You're right."

Christine gave Derek a wink and continued. "It's obvious to me that Mr. Bartlet works for the people of this district. Mr. Roush works to line his own pockets. That's something I'm going to remember on election day. Sincerely..." she picked up a roster from the corner of the desk. "Adam Malone, Candia, N-H."

Gemma rolled the letter out of the typewriter and handed it to her boss. "I think it sounds great."

Christine spun around to get Jed's reaction. "What do you think?"

"It...it sounds ordinary."

"It's supposed to. Like I said, Adam Malone's an ordinary guy."

"In that case, it sounds fine, I guess." Jed was still confused. "But, what happens now? What do you do with that letter?"

"We send it to Adam Malone."

"There really is an Adam Malone?"

"Of course! He's a resident of Candia. He's one of our volunteer letter writers. He sends in letters to the editor of all the local papers about once a week."

"But he didn't write that letter. You did."

"It's how it works, Jed," Derek told him. "Christine and Gemma write the letter. Gemma will now mail it to Malone. He'll sign it, stick it in his own envelope, get it postmarked Candia, and send it off to the papers."

Jed contemplated this scenario. "So we write the letter for him, he pretends he wrote it, and the papers then print it?"

"Right. He believes in you. He wants you to win, so he volunteers to do this. And he's just one of about 15 Christine has recruited so far. We're going to circulate different letters between all of them and see how many the papers print each day."

"Wow." Jed was floored by the process.

"That's it?"

"No, that's not it. I don't understand. If they believe in me, then why can't they write their own letters?"

"Because we can't trust them to write what we want them to say," Christine answered. "It's a language thing. This way, we control the words they use and we avoid any unfortunate mishaps along the way."

"But these aren't their words."

"Precisely."

"That isn't just a tad dishonest?"

Christine shrugged. "It's politics."

It's politics. Jed had heard those words so many times in the past several months that he was beginning to resent the phrase altogether. In an ideal world, politics would exist solely for the people. It wouldn't be so dirty, so manipulative. It wouldn't reek of false motives and sleazy campaign maneuvers. But as his staff told him so often, this wasn't an ideal world and in order to succeed, he had to abandon any misgivings that it was.

"Make way for a superstar," Larry announced, following Abbey into the cramped communications office.

"Hardly," she scoffed.

Dressed in a long ivory sweater dress with a turtleneck top and a bottom that flowed over her tall brown leather boots, Abbey strolled towards her husband, dumping her brown leather tote bag on the chair behind him.

"You look terrific," Jed said as he held out his hand to welcome her. "How was breakfast?"

"The food was excellent. The other stuff, well..." She looked uneasy about her response. "I think there might be an incident."

"What happened?" The League of Women Voters had been courting Abbey for weeks to attend their regional breakfast. Jed couldn't imagine a more benign appearance, especially since her popularity with the women of New Hampshire seemed to grow every single day.

"Lydia Gyles from Channel 7 was there," Larry informed everyone. "She brought up the malpractice suit. I jumped in and said that Abbey had no comment under the advice of her lawyer."

"So what's the big deal?"

"Turns out, Lydia contacted Arlene Niederlander yesterday, who referred her to her husband's primary care doctor to discuss the medical condition that Abbey treated."

Jed tilted his head as the reality hit him. "Kyle Nelson," he said, looking at Abbey.

Abbey nodded. "I'm afraid so."

"Has she talked to him yet?"

"She will on Monday."

"That's okay." Jed beamed with optimism. "He can't possibly say anything that bad, not if he wants to continue working at the hospital. They must have some policy, right?"

"He can't say anything that bad?" Christine wondered aloud. "What does that mean? Who is this guy?"

Abbey replied, "He was my resident when I was a student doing third-year rotations. Let's just say he doesn't like me very much. About two years ago, he referred Mr. Niederlander to me. And after his death, Dr. Nelson questioned me about it."

"More like threatened," Jed mumbled. "The man's an ass who's had it out for Abbey since her first day as a third-year med student. All these years later, he still hasn't let up. He blamed Niederlander's death on Abbey's so-called negligence."

"And Lydia Gyles set up an interview with him?" Derek looked to Christine.

"I'm on it," she said immediately as she turned to Gemma. "Get me Miss Gyles on the phone and transfer her to my desk."

"I still say we're worrying over nothing," Jed said as his communications team scrambled around him.

Abbey wasn't so sure. "What can we do about this?" she asked Derek.

"Chris will figure out. She's the best. In the meantime, I want to talk to you both about something else."

"Oh God." Jed had learned that when Derek wanted to talk, it was usually about more changes.

"This is a good thing, trust me. Or at least, it has the potential to be good."

"What is it?"

"We want to use your daughter, Elizabeth."

"What do you mean 'use' her?"

"We've got a Get Out The Vote rally coming up at UNH to target college freshman who aren't registered to vote yet. I'm thinking about sending Elizabeth to help out."

Jed instantly dismissed the idea. "No."

"Jed, think about it."

"I gave you a list of acceptable surrogates. No way are we using Liz."

"Elizabeth is charming, articulate, intelligent, and very popular among her peers."

"I'm aware of that."

Derek continued. "She's a straight-A student, cheerleading captain, volleyball champion, the star of the school play, editor of the yearbook staff, homecoming princess, class Vice-President...and on top of all that, she's as photogenic as her parents. The press will eat her up, not to mention the students at UNH."

"Why would college students listen to a high school junior?"

"Because Elizabeth doesn't look or act like a high school junior. She's got the kind of personality that people notice from a mile away. She's incredibly well-spoken, she knows all the issues. In fact, I dare say she knows more about politics than some of the people working in this office. You've taught her exceptionally well. The first time I met her, I couldn't believe she was only sixteen."

"Won't sending her out there make her a target for the press?" Abbey asked.

"Of course it will," Jed answered. "Forget it, Derek. I'm not putting my daughter in that position."

"I agree with Derek, Jed." Larry's voice was calm and much less aggressive than Derek's. His opinion carried more weight with Jed. "I think that Liz would be perfect for this. And really, all it entails is keeping her on campus to direct the students who want to register after the rally. There will be campaign staff there and I'll personally see to it that they're under strict orders not to let the media anywhere near her."

"You want her there so she can advocate for me. That's what this is all about."

"No, it's not. This thing is bi-partisan. Liz won't be there to defend you, just to reach out to kids not that much older than she is, to tell them why it's important for them to vote and to educate them on how the upcoming election affects them. That's all. The Roush campaign will probably recruit other teens to do the same."

"Lizzie's never done a GOTV event before."

"We'll teach her everything she needs to know."

Jed looked to Abbey. "What do you think?"

"If Lizzie wants to do it, I don't have a problem with it."

Seeing Jed still hesitating, Derek added, "All right, look, you two talk it over with Elizabeth and let me know tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? You sure give us a lot of time."

"The rally's coming up. There isn't much time to give." Derek picked up a call sheet. "Right now, though, I need you in call time."

"I'll be there in a minute." Jed sighed as he smiled at Abbey. "It's going to be one of those days."

"Call time?"

"It's the office I go to to make all my fundraising calls. Could it be more stupidly named?"

Abbey chuckled. "What time are you heading to Vermont?"

"Christine and I are leaving here in about an hour."

"Okay. Well, I'm going to go clean up the house a little before the party. Cake and ice cream at 7:00. Don't be late, okay?"

"I promise."

She gave him a kiss. "Love you."

"Love you too," he said as she walked out of the office.

* * *

"Zoey, you're not doing it right. That's why it doesn't fit." Ellie pulled her sister's hand out of the way so she could slide the puzzle piece into its slot. "See? That's how you're supposed to do it."

Abbey stood in the corner of the family room, spying on the interaction between her two youngest daughters amid a dozen other guests. Ellie, who was usually sweet and helpful with Zoey, seemed to be annoyed by the little girl tonight. Her tone had such an edge to it that a hurt Zoey plopped down on the ground and lowered her head while Ellie and her friends continued putting the pieces together.

When Liz lured some of the girls over to the sofa by promising to give them all makeovers, Abbey approached Ellie. "Come here. I want to talk to you."

Ellie stood and followed her mother. "What did I do?"

"I want you to be nicer to Zoey."

"I was being nice, but she was ruining the puzzle."

"She wasn't ruining it. She doesn't know how to do it. All you had to do was show her."

"I did, but she wasn't paying attention and she didn't get it." Ellie didn't yet know about Zoey's troubles at school.

"Then show her again," Abbey snapped.

"Okay, I will. Sorry," a contrite Ellie replied as she began to walk away.

"Hey." Abbey held her still and kneeled down to her level. "Look, I know she's been following you around and asking you a thousand questions ever since the party started, but there's a reason for that. She feels left out. Your friends look up to Lizzie because she's older and they like you because you're you, but Zoey's kind of brushed aside. You remember when you were that age and Lizzie had friends over?"

"They used to ignore me."

"Yeah, they did. But Lizzie tried to include you every once in a while. That's all I'm asking you to do. Zoey's not good at puzzles, so you just have to be a little patient with her. Instead of hurting her feelings, help her...or include her in some other game."

"Okay."

"Just for a little while, Ellie. After cake and ice cream, I'll take her upstairs and she and I will have girls' night up there and you and your friends can have fun down here. Deal?"

"Deal! I didn't mean to hurt her feelings. I really didn't."

"I know you didn't, Sweetie. Just go over and help her finish the puzzle. She'll be thrilled." Ellie turned from her mother, but she didn't move. "Ellie?"

"When will Daddy be home?" she asked, turning back around.

"Soon. In fact, I'm gonna go check on him right now."

"And then we'll open presents?"

"Absolutely."

"Okay!"

Abbey looked on as Ellie returned to the coffee table, toppled the puzzle, and turned it over to start fresh. This time, she coached Zoey on where to put the pieces and like an observant student, Zoey listened attentively, then did as Ellie said, glancing at her big sister every now and then to get a nod of approval.

Satisfied, Abbey went into the kitchen to call Derek and check on Jed's progress. It wasn't like him to be so late. At least, it never used to be. The rules had changed ever since he kicked off his campaign. Late nights and missed appointments had become more prominent and despite Jed's efforts, it was obvious he no longer had control over his own schedule.

"Derek, it's Abbey. Have you heard from them?"

"Not since they left. They probably ran into traffic or something."

"In Vermont?"

"It's only 7:30, Abbey. They'll be home soon."

She looked at the clock on the wall and remembered that she had asked Jed to be home by seven. Under normal circumstances, she would have been worried about his safety, but she had learned during the primaries that politicians, and their handlers, have a tenuous grasp of time, especially at fundraising events where one handshake usually turns into a conversation that leads to an introduction and yet another conversation which then seamlessly continues the cycle.

"Mom?" Lizzie peeked her head into the kitchen.

"Yeah?" Abbey replied as she hung up the phone.

"Everyone's done with the pizza and some of the girls who aren't spending the night are leaving at eight. Shouldn't we do cake and presents before they have to go?"

"Your father's not home yet."

"When will he be home?"

"I don't know."

"What do you want me to do?"

Abbey looked at the clock once more, then said, "Get the candles out of that drawer."

Jed had never missed something so important and if it was up to her, she would have postponed the big moment until he came home, but Lizzie was right. Since everyone wasn't staying for the slumber party, she had no choice but to move things along.

Once she and Liz put the finishing touches on the three-layer buttercream Barbie cake, Liz led the girls towards the dining room table where they all gathered around Ellie. The blonde ten-year-old smiled at the gasps that escaped her friends, her eyes twinkling just like theirs at the first glance of her cake.

As they began singing, Ellie sat back and scanned the crowd, her smile slowly fading under the flash of the camera when she realized her father was missing.

"Happy Birthday to you,

Happy Birthday to you,

Happy Birthday dear Ellie,

Happy Birthday to you."

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 7

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Jed was surprised by the antics of his new press secretary, Christine; Abbey held off on cake and ice cream at Ellie's birthday party as long as she could, but when she couldn't hold off any longer, Ellie realized her father had missed her party

Summary: Frustrated that he and Christine are stranded in their car in Vermont, Jed tries to get help; Ellie gets a surprise; Jed expresses doubts to Abbey

* * *

"DAMN IT!" Jed angrily kicked the deflated rear tire. Soaking wet, he looked up at Christine standing on the other side of the car. "What the hell were you thinking driving around without a spare?"

"I told you a hundred times, I had a spare."

"But you used it. Most people, when that happens, would replace their spare."

"You know what, if you're going to be this much fun, you can walk back to New Hampshire."

"Right about now, that sounds like a great idea!"

Rain pellets showered them as they exchanged a steely, humorless stare. Christine opened the driver's door and sat down in the car, waiting for Jed to do the same on the passenger's side. At first, he turned his back to her and leaned up against the window but when the winds picked up and he caught a flash of lightning, he followed her lead.

"All we have to do is flag down a motorist to call triple-A for us," she said.

"A motorist. Here. On this road. Have you ever been to this part of Vermont? These country roads are lucky to see a car an hour, especially on a night like tonight."

"So what do we do?"

"I don't know, Christine. You're the one who's supposed to have all the answers."

"What is it you want from me, Jed? Do you want me to stand out in the middle of the street and lift my skirt to get us a ride back to town? What?"

Jed took a deep, calming breath, then replied, "Look, I'm sorry. It's just...I'm missing my daughter's birthday party."

"I know. You told me."

"It's just that that's never happened before. Ellie's never going to forgive me."

"Tell her what happened."

"Like that'll make a difference. Lizzie might understand something like that, but Ellie doesn't get the politics game. And she's young and sensitive and years from now, all she'll remember about tonight is that I missed her party."

"Her real birthday is tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah."

"And that's when you're doing the family thing with grandparents and aunts and uncles?"

"Yeah."

"Then what's the big deal? It's not like you're missing her birthday, it's just the party with her friends."

"You don't get it. SHE wanted me there. Birthdays are huge in my family. Abbey and I go all out for their birthdays. We rented a country club for Lizzie's Sweet Sixteen in March and we wanted to do something equally big for Ellie, but she insisted she wanted a slumber party at the farm. She wanted to go horseback riding with her friends and make candyapples from apples they'd pick in the orchard...and she wanted her parents and her sisters to enjoy it all with her. That's all she wanted."

"That sounds like fun."

"Since it's a slumber party, it had to be today because it's Saturday, which was fine at first. When she and Abbey planned the party, I didn't count on having to go to this damn fundraiser tonight of all nights, a fundraiser, by the way, I didn't even want to go to in the first place!"

"Do you have any idea how much money people donated to your campaign tonight?"

"They paid money to have dinner with the Governor. I just happened to be there."

"What do you care what they were paying for? The point is, the money's going to your campaign. Besides, those people weren't just random voters off the street. They were invited to attend because they have a history of donating to democratic political campaigns. They know the drill. Anyway, they had their dinner with the Governor and they got to meet you as well as their own congressional candidate. That's a pretty good deal."

"All the same, I'm finding it hard to get excited about the money because by Monday, it'll be all gone and Derek will want to go to another hometown dinner or black-tie party with political celebrities or whatever the hell else he can come up with. This time, it'll be in Maine or Connecticut or Rhode Island. Anywhere but New Hampshire because, apparently, that's how we do things now."

"You have a lot of hostility towards Derek, you know that?"

"It's mutual."

"So I gathered."

After a brief moment of silence, Jed reminded Christine about the reason for his frustration. "Ellie wanted me there tonight. What are her friends going to think when her own father misses her birthday party?"

"What do you care what they think?"

"You spent every day of the last two weeks telling me I should always care what everyone thinks about me. Were you just full of it or does that golden philosophy of yours go out the window when we're talking about an age group that's too young to vote?"

She ignored the attack on her ethics and said, "Ellie will understand."

"I told her...I promised her I'd make it back for cake and ice cream. I promised her that...and I don't take my promises lightly."

It was obvious to Christine that this wasn't about Ellie forgiving Jed. It was about the fact that Jed would never forgive himself. "Things happen. So you miss tonight. You'll be there tomorrow."

"Do you have children?" he snapped.

"No, but..."

"Then you don't know what it's like to disappoint them."

"You're right. I don't know what that's like, but I do know a thing or two about politics. I've been working this business for ten years and before that, I was on the political beat for the Baltimore Sun and the Associated Press and in all that time, I've never met a politician worth his salt who didn't end disappointing his family somewhere along the way. It's part of the job description."

"It wasn't supposed to be ME!"

"You can't seriously be that naive." Was it naiveté or just wishful thinking, she wondered. "If you think you're above that, Jed, then you're in for a rude awakening. What exactly do you think is going to happen when you win?"

"I'm not thinking about that now."

"Well you better think about it. You're moving to Washington. You won't be there to tuck them in at night, you won't be there to share breakfast with them in the morning, you won't be there to check homework or help with baths, you'll be lucky to get back for quick weekend trips now and then."

"I don't want to get into this with you." Jed stared straight ahead.

Christine realized that he hadn't yet made peace with the facts she was throwing at him. "Tell me you and Abbey have talked about it."

"Of course we've talked about it."

"Then why are you acting like this is all news to you? Why haven't you faced reality yet?" She changed the subject when it was clear she wouldn't get an answer. "Why are you in this race, Jed?"

"Excuse me?" The implication was unmistakable.

"You heard me. Why are you here? You seem to hate everything about politics, or at least, everything about winning. You hate fundraising..."

"I find it outrageous that what seems to be the only prerequisite for winning public office is drowning in wealth. What ever happened to voting for the person who does the best job, the person who will best represent his constituents? What happened to electing a person to represent you in an honest, ethical way?"

"Without the cash, how will people know you're that person? We use the money for campaign ads, Jed. We use it for commercials and banners and signs and gas money for appearances, and staff salaries..."

"I know what we use it for," he barked. "My point is, politics shouldn't be about that."

"No, it shouldn't, but it is. And you hate that just like you hate everything else. You hate your staff..."

"I do NOT hate my staff."

"Then why are you always angry at Derek?"

"Are you and Derek an item?"

"No."

"Then why the hell do you care?"

"Because whatever conflict is going on between you and Derek affects my ability to do my job. From what I've seen so far, you're a reasonable man. Intelligent, well-spoken, and well-meaning. But you've been blindsided by some of the things Derek has pushed in front of you. He's taken you away from your family, monopolized your time, and he's pushed you to do things you don't want to do, like supporting the letter to the editor we wrote for Adam Malone this morning."

"What's your point?"

"My point is, something is keeping you here, involved, and I want to know what that is. I think once you figure it out, you can finally begin to keep your eye on the goal instead of the journey. Things will get a lot easier then...for all of us."

"I'm not so sure about that."

"At the very least, you'll feel better."

"The only thing that can make me feel better right now is walking through the front door of my house, carrying three dozen balloons for my little girl." He stared out his side window. "The rain is letting up."

"Not for long. It'll probably start pouring again soon."

"I don't care." Jed reached for the latch. "We could be waiting all night. I'm going to take a walk up the road."

"How far?"

"As far as it takes to get to a phone."

"Jed..."

"I know it's your job to tell me not to go, but I'm going. You can come with me or you can stay here, but I can't just sit and wait for someone to drive by. I have to do something."

"Fine." Christine pushed open her door and got out of the car. "I just want it on the record that I think this is a bad idea."

"Duly noted."

* * *

Back at the house, Ellie and her friends had slipped into their pajamas and retired to the family room. Camping out on top of a layer of sleeping bags haphazardly strewn across the carpet, the girls huddled together on that stormy night to tell ghost stories. Ellie had already turned out the lights so only the dull glow of an old flashlight and random strikes of lightning made it possible to see anything.

Without being noticed, Jed framed himself in the doorway while the silhouettes of the six helium balloons he held in his hand, bounced off the wall "Did someone mention something about a party?"

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

A round of girlish screams in the dark frightened even Jed. He jumped back and released the balloons as he reached for the lights.

"DADDY!" Ellie shouted when she saw her father standing bewildered in the middle of her frantic friends.

"JED!" Abbey sprinted down the stairs wielding an umbrella. "What in the world is going on?"

Jed held up his arms. "I just tried to say hello. That's all."

"We were telling ghost stories and he scared us," Ellie told her mother.

"Not on purpose," Jed assured his wife as she approached. "Whoa, put down the umbrella, will you? You could put out an eye with that thing."

"It's after ten."

"I know." He turned to his daughter. "Ellie, I'm so sorry I'm late."

"That's okay." She reached up to hug him.

He picked her up in his arms and kissed her cheek. "Happy Birthday, Princess."

"Why are you wet?"

"I got caught in the rain, but I got here just as fast as I could." He set her down and grabbed the string to two balloons. "These are for you and if you wait right here while I take care of the cab, I'll have something else for you too."

Jed started towards the study with Abbey following closely behind.

"So what happened?"

"Didn't Derek call you?"

"Yes, but all he said was that you had a flat and you were calling a tow truck. So now I'm asking, what happened?"

"We got a flat..." Jed turned to see her still holding the umbrella. He took it out of her hands. "That's better. And by the way, you couldn't find a better weapon to clobber someone with?"

"The flat, Jed."

"We got a flat out on Rt. 4, ten miles or so outside Woodstock. Christine didn't have a spare so we sat there for an hour until the rain let up enough to hike up the road."

"How far?"

"I don't know. It took about another hour, give or take, until we found a bed and breakfast. The owner called a tow truck for the car and a cab to bring us home."

"You took a cab all the way from Vermont?"

"It was either that or wait another two hours for a tow truck and neither Christine nor I wanted to do that. I have to go pay the driver. He's waiting outside."

"One hell of a fare for him."

"Listen, Abbey, I would have called, but the owner of the bed and breakfast had a block on long distance calls. Christine called one of our donors, a Vermont couple, and they phoned Derek who was told to call you."

"And he did."

"I'm really sorry I'm late."

"You didn't forget. That's all that matters."

"Of course I didn't forget. Did you really think that I would forget about Ellie's birthday party?" He was shocked and a little hurt that she would entertain the thought.

"I assumed you just got caught up in things at the fundraiser."

He put his hands on her cheeks to force her to see the sincerity shining in his eyes. "I swear, I did everything possible to get back here. Christine and I left the fundraiser at five just so I could be here by seven."

"I shouldn't have doubted you." Abbey covered his hands with her own. "We should get you out of these wet clothes."

"First thing's first." He handed her a wad of bills he took out of their emergency cash stash. "Would you do me a favor and pay the driver while I give Ellie her present?"

"She already opened all the presents she's going to open tonight. The rest we're saving for tomorrow."

"I want to give her this one tonight," he said as he pulled out a beautifully wrapped giftbox from his desk drawer.

"What is it?"

"It's a surprise." Jed always had a knack for picking out one gift by himself.

Abbey gave him a warm smile and turned on her heels to go pay the driver. Jed followed her out of the study, but he detoured into the family room.

"Ellie?" He opened her palm and placed the present in her hand. "This is for you, Sweetheart."

Ellie tore open the paper and gasped as she lifted the top. Inside, on a bed of blue satin ruffles, sat a sterling silver necklace. Dangling off the end was a silver cross pendant with a single diamond stone sparkling from its center.

"THANK YOU!" She jumped into her father's arms. "I LOVE it!"

"Here." He turned her around so he could clasp the necklace around her neck. "That's not a rhinestone. It's a real diamond, so don't you dare lose it."

"I won't ever take it off. Thank you!" She turned back around to show off her pendant.

"You're welcome. I'm just sorry I missed all the excitement. You girls should go to bed now and we'll do cake and ice cream all over again at breakfast. I want pictures."

"Mom will never let us have cake and ice cream for breakfast."

Jed held his index finger up to his lips. "Shhh."

"Busted, Jethro."

He turned his head then, surprised to find Abbey standing behind him. His hair was mussed, still damp from the rain and hanging down over his forehead, and his eyes twinkled with a mixture of mischief and guilt at having been caught. She couldn't resist that look. Her camera poised just right, she snapped a picture just as he looked over his shoulder. Ellie was giggling in the background.

* * *

"How'd it go tonight?" Abbey pulled down the covers on the bed as she and Jed kicked off their shoes and began to settle in.

"How did what go?"

"The fundraiser. How did it go?"

"Oh." He was distracted. "Fine."

"That's it? Weren't you meeting the Governor?"

"Yeah and it was fine."

"What did he have to say?"

"Nothing important."

"The Governor had nothing important to say?"

"No."

"How many other candidates were there?"

"Geez, Abbey, what the hell is this, an interrogation?" She froze with his words. He bowed his head remorsefully and said, "Sorry. I'm sorry. I'm just tired."

"Is there something you're not telling me?"

"No, of course not."

She discarded her robe, sat down on the edge of the bed, and eased her head back against the headboard. "Did you and Christine have a fight?"

"No."

"Then why don't you want to talk about it?"

"Is it possible...just for tonight, is it possible for us not to delve deep into my psyche and analyze why I'm feeling just a little resentful about the campaign? Can we do that?"

"You're feeling resentful?" She couldn't help the question. That was the last thing she expected. "Okay, I'll drop it."

"Thank you." He slid under the covers and turned his back to her.

"How much money do you think you raised?" Jed sat up, frustrated. Abbey did the same. "I'm curious, okay? I'm not analyzing you or prodding you for top secret information. I just want to know how many people showed up to the dinner."

He couldn't blame her. After all, Abbey had lived and breathed this campaign for as long as he had. "Not enough. And before you ask, no, the money situation is not what I'm upset about tonight."

"I know it's not," she said simply. "You're upset tonight because you missed Ellie's party and you think that makes you a bad father. You think this is one of those things that kids store away in their subconscious to bring up years from now in a therapist's office when they whine about their lives going astray."

There was more to it, of course. Abbey didn't know that his talk with Christine had awakened insecurities in him he didn't even think existed. She didn't know that Jed was thinking ahead - to winning and moving and to what that would mean to their family. Still, even without knowing all that, she was certainly on the right track.

"I thought we weren't going to do this tonight."

"All right, fine." She rested on her back and stared at the ceiling while he rolled back over to his side. "Jed?"

"Yeah?"

"You're a Nobel Prize winner. People pay money just to hear you speak."

"That's different. That's not campaign money."

"Then make it campaign money. In fact, make it all campaign money. It's not like we haven't been smart with our finances over the years."

He rolled over to face her. "What are you saying?"

"When you were in grad school, we scrimped and saved. Even after you started working at Northeastern and then Dartmouth, we watched every penny to put me through med school and to help us get by with my measly resident's salary."

"Yeah."

"We don't have to do that anymore, Jed. I'm a surgeon. You're a Nobel Prize winner. We're not hurting for money. So what's to stop you from financing this run the same way Elliot Roush is, just for the next few weeks until the money from the fundraisers starts rolling in?"

"I'm not gonna gamble away our savings, Abbey."

"We'll make more money."

"I don't feel good about taking that big a risk with our future."

"Most of what we have now is thanks to you. So we dip into our savings a little to get us through this rough patch in the campaign. I think it's worth it...and I think it's a risk that's going to pay off."

Jed sat up once again. "And if the money doesn't roll in? If the fundraisers are a big fat flop, then what?"

"Then we revisit this conversation. But that won't happen."

"What if I still lose in the end, Abbey?"

"You won't."

"I might."

"You won't."

"I wish I was as sure as you." He couldn't bring himself to tell her that deep in his heart, part of him didn't even want to win. He knew that losing the election would crush his spirit, but at the moment, he had his doubts and until he could resolve them, the last thing he wanted was to dive further into professional politics.

Abbey sat up beside him and wrapped her arm around his shoulder. "I wish you were too."

TBC


	8. Chapter 8

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 8

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Derek asked Jed and Abbey to consider letting Lizzie take part in a GOTV rally at the University of New Hampshire (chapter 6); Abbey was asked about her malpractice suit by reporter Lydia Gyles (chapter 6); concerned about rising dairy prices, Jed decided to block a measure in the state house that would shut out out-of-state competition (chapter 10 of Phoenix)

Summary: Abbey turns to an old friend to help Jed; while at UNH, Liz is approached by a student who takes an immediate interest in her; Abbey is confronted at the airport by Lydia Gyles; Leo is ambushed

* * *

"Ron!" Abbey stood to wave to her lunch companion from across the restaurant.

He hadn't changed all that much in the last 17 years. His hair was thinner, his hairline was more prominent, and he was noticeably thicker around the middle, but Ron Ehrlich was still a handsome man. Not as handsome as Jed, she noted, but handsome nonetheless.

He approached her, holding out his hand to help her up, and when she stood, he greeted her with a kiss to her cheek, then examined her from the top of her cranberry knit sweater to the hem of her t-length skirt. "Wow, Abbey. You look spectacular."

"I was about to say the same to you." She sat back down. "How are you, Ron?"

"Stunned, to tell you the truth." He took a seat across from her. "I haven't seen you since your wedding day."

"I've been so bad about keeping in touch," she said sheepishly. "I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it. You've been busy raising your family. I can understand that, even though I have missed you over the years. It's a shame our friendship had to be a casualty of your marriage."

"What?" His bold words surprised her. "No, that isn't true."

"Isn't it?" Ron was tweaking her now just for fun, but Abbey took him seriously. "When you and Jed started dating, he didn't know I was in the picture. Once he did, he had trouble getting over the fact that you were cheating on him."

"I was NOT cheating on him and how dare you make such an assumption!"

"Okay. I apologize." He chuckled. "But even after you gave me the boot, Jed told you he wasn't comfortable with us being friends, you guys fought about it and in the end, you decided a friendship with me wasn't worth upsetting him. See how well I know you?"

"We never fought about this." Ron cocked his brow, unconvinced. "Okay, once...in London. But Ron, you've got it all wrong. Jed realized he was being unreasonable."

He held up his hand to stop her. "I'm not sure he was unreasonable. I wouldn't want my wife dining with her ex-boyfriend either."

"You're married?"

"Blissfully. It'll be ten years next month."

Though she had heard rumors that Ron had tied the knot, she never knew for sure. With sincere happiness shining in her eyes, Abbey replied, "Congratulations."

"Thanks."

"Jed isn't the reason I didn't keep in touch," she said. "I want to be clear about that. Don't blame him. If you and I had decided to continue our friendship, Jed would have been supportive."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Then he's a better man than I am."

"The truth is, you and I practically grew up together. I didn't keep in touch after...you know...after..."

"After you met Jed?"

"Ron." Abbey sighed.

"Abbey, I'm kidding! It was a million years ago. You and I weren't in love with each other and the break-up was pretty much mutual. Give me some credit. I'm not harboring a grudge, I'm just giving you a hard time, the way I used to when we were kids."

"I guess the fact that you lost your charm - along with your hair - threw me off-track." She grinned.

"Ouch, Dr. Bartlet." He grinned back. "Doctor. That has a nice ring to it. I always knew you'd make it, Abs."

"Thanks, Ron."

"So, let me guess why I'm here. Jed's running for Congress, he's several points down, his campaign is losing money, and the Union Leader will probably end up endorsing Roush."

"Am I even needed for this conversation?"

Ron used a more serious tone. "He's fighting an uphill battle."

Abbey replied in kind. "Yes, he is."

"And you want an endorsement from me." It wasn't a question. "That's why you invited me to lunch."

"The SBA's endorsement could really help."

"I bet it could."

"You endorsed Richardson in Connecticut and Johnson in Maine."

"Should I bother to ask how you knew that I'm the guy in charge or should I assume you knew the same way I knew you're an M-D?"

Abbey shrugged. "I kept up on some things, Ron. The things I didn't know, I looked up. Every candidate in the region has been trying to court the New England Small Business Association. It wasn't hard to figure out who to talk to."

As the waiter interrupted their conversation, Ron never took his eyes off Abbey. He waited for her to order a turkey sandwich on rye with lettuce, a smudge of mustard, and a side of pasta salad, then said, "I haven't seen you in 17 years and I could have guessed your order before I even walked in here. It's good to see that some things never change."

Abbey smiled. "About Jed..."

"Yeah, Abbey, we did endorse Richardson and Johnson. We felt they represented the values of the SBA."

"And so does Jed." She could see Ron's hesitation. "He does, Ron. You must know what Jed has done for the people of New Hampshire while in the state legislature."

"I know that about five years ago, Jed worked behind the scenes to get his colleagues to vote against a measure that would keep out-of-state dairy farmers from profiting in New Hampshire."

Abbey clasped her hands on the table. "You did your homework."

"Don't you think the campaign has already contacted us?"

"I know they have."

"And I explained to them that an endorsement from the SBA just wasn't feasible."

"I know that too."

"Then you know that I've researched everything Jed did as a state legislator, including the decision he made to screw the farmers."

"He didn't screw the farmers and I happen to think what he did with the farmers was the right thing to do. Competition keeps prices low."

"It also keeps profits low."

"As head of the New England SBA, you should be concerned about ALL small businesses, not just the farmers, Ron."

"I am."

"Jed was worried that the rising dairy prices would put out the smaller dairy shops that were losing money because customers could no longer afford their products. Tell me, why does the SBA have a problem with that?"

"It's short-sighted. If Jed had his way, he would have stifled profits across the state and that loss would have trickled down to the mom and pop shops regardless."

"That's your opinion."

"My professional opinion, as an economist. And it's not just me. The only reason more people aren't talking about his plan is because the measure never ended up on the floor of the state house. If it had, you would know that many people disapproved of Jed's stand, Abbey."

"And a lot of people agreed with him."

"I'm not here to argue this issue with you. He can explain his politics on the campaign trail. In the meantime, I'm afraid I can't help him out."

"Yes, you can."

"If Jed gets to Congress and the New England Dairy Farming Compact comes up for a vote, he's going to vote against it. That's all I need to know to make up my mind."

"Talk about short-sighted. Jed has done a lot for this state."

"I'm not saying he hasn't. I'm just saying based on what I know, Jed Bartlet isn't someone the SBA can support. I'm sorry."

"You're overlooking everything else. You act like he's a one-issue candidate, Ron."

"I know he's not."

"Then what happened to keeping an open mind? You used to hate snap judgments."

"It's not a snap judgment. I've been thinking about Jed since the day his campaign director approached the SBA. Incidentally, did Derek send you here?"

"No, of course not. I'm here on my own."

"To try to convince me even after I already said no?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact."

"You're as tenacious as ever, aren't you?"

"Jed's a good man. He CARES about his constituents. You may not agree with his position on everything, Ron, but if you just hear me out over lunch, I promise you, you will know that Jed is the right man to represent the district."

"You're going to have a tough sell, Abbey."

"I'm good at tough sells. Put your bias aside and listen to me, for old time's sake."

Ron moved his hands to allow the waiter to set down the cheeseburger he ordered. "When do you have to get back to the hospital?"

Abbey dropped a napkin into her lap and picked up a fork to start on her pasta salad. "I'm not going back in today. Jed and I are visiting friends in Chicago tonight."

"When?"

"I have to leave for the airport in about an hour."

"In that case, if you're as persuasive as you used to be, I guess I'm in trouble."

He was willing to listen. That was a start. "You very well might be."

"Before you tell me how wrong I am about your husband, let me ask you something. Does Jed know you're here on his behalf?"

"No," she replied. "And he probably wouldn't be thrilled if he did."

"I can't imagine why. He should know how lucky he is to have you."

"He already does." She smiled.

* * *

Remnants of the Get Out The Vote rally littered the amphitheater at the University of New Hampshire. Streamers, balloons, and Decision '84 signs and buttons were strewn along the concrete next to a dozen tables where volunteers helped students register to vote.

Scribbling on a clipboard in the middle of the crowd, Lizzie paced the sidewalk, occasionally looking up to help the interns sent from her father's campaign. The stare of a young man standing only a few feet away didn't trouble her at first, but when he got closer, she dropped her clipboard to her side and confronted him.

"Can I help you?"

"I don't know yet," he said, a little apprehensive.

"Do you go here?"

"Yeah."

"So you're over 18?"

"I'm 19. I'm a sophomore."

"Are you registered to vote?"

"Nah. It's not something I'm into." He watched her closely, amused by the curious expression on her face.

"What's not?"

"Politics. It's not my thing." Even more amused by the twitch in her brow, he smiled at her.

"You don't have to be into politics to vote. Voting is a right and it's one that no one should take for granted."

"Says the girl whose father is a candidate," he teased.

"That's not the only reason I'm here."

"Sure it's not," he scoffed. "Winning votes for your father never even entered your mind, right?"

"If you're not going to register then why are you cluttering up the line?"

"Because I like talking to you."

"Why?"

"You're...I don't know...weird."

"Weird?" She was offended. "How am I weird?"

"Weird in a good way."

"How can weird be good?"

He stuttered then. "Well...I meant that...you were pretty cool up there trying to get us all keyed up about the election. That's why I came over here. I wanted to tell you 'good job' getting everyone excited."

"Everyone except you." His discomfort eased her agitation. He was tall and athletic with brown hair and green eyes. An attractive combination, she thought, even if he did have noticeable trouble communicating.

"Well, you never really had a shot with me. I only showed up because my buddies dragged me here."

"Should I thank them?"

"Don't bother. They took off after 10 minutes."

"Why did you stay?"

"To watch you do your thing."

Liz didn't acknowledge the flirting. Instead, she used the opportunity to grab his arm and lead him to a shorter line. "Don't you care who becomes the next president? You should vote."

"Why? Reagan's gonna win. There's no way Mondale can beat him."

"Never say never. And anyway, there are local races."

"Yeah, there are. But so what?"

"So, you should vote."

"Say I told you right now that I was going to vote against your dad, that I wanted to vote for the other guy. Would you still want me to register?"

"I think every American citizen who's over 18 should register to vote. If you wanna throw away your vote on an ignorant buffoon, that's your mistake to make."

He loved the fire he ignited inside her with that comment. "But you're not feeling bitter or anything."

"I'm not bitter! It's just that my dad is a much better choice and I think the only reason you're pretending you're interested in Elliott Roush is because you're trying to jerk me around."

She was right. After all, he didn't even know the name Elliot Roush. "Why would I want to jerk around such a pretty girl? That would be kind of stupid of me, wouldn't it?"

"Well, yeah. But if you're not jerking me around, then you really do want to vote for Mr. Roush, which kinda makes you stupid anyway, so..."

"You're gonna insult me now just because I may not vote for your dad?" He may have called himself stupid, but he objected to her doing it.

"I'm not insulting you."

"I thought this thing was bipartisan."

"It is...officially." The corner of her lip curved into a mischievous grin. "Look, just register to vote and then read up on the candidates. Both campaigns have all kinds of literature about their guy."

"You expect me to waste time registering for an election I probably won't even vote in and then waste another hour or two researching politicians? I can't think of a more boring way to spend the evening."

"Well, you could always skip the research and I'll just tell you what you need to know."

"Won't your version of the facts be blatantly biased?"

"They might be, but that's what happens when you're too lazy to read."

She looked so cute giving him a playful shrug, he thought. "So registering to vote is a prerequisite for spending time with you?"

"Yep!"

"That's not exactly fair."

"Tough." She reached for a registration form on the table and handed it to him with her clipboard. "Fill it out."

"It's not my turn yet."

"I know, but I'm afraid you'll run off to join your friends if you have to wait a moment longer. Now hurry up. There are people waiting."

He skimmed the form. "Running away doesn't sound like a bad idea."

"Stop being a baby."

"Seriously, I don't know anything about this. I don't know if I'm a Democrat or a Republican. Hell, maybe I'm an Independent."

"You're hopeless."

"I told you, it's not my thing."

"Just fill out your name. I'll help you through the rest." Liz read along as he wrote his name across the first line. "Hmm, Douglas Westin. That sounds like a democratic name to me."

He rolled his eyes. "There's no such thing as a democratic name and don't call me that."

"What?"

"Douglas. Only my mom calls me Douglas and I hate it even then."

"What should I call you?"

"Doug. I go by Doug."

"Cool."

* * *

After her lunch with Ron, Abbey rushed to the airport to meet Jed. She was walking too fast to take notice of the media truck parked at the terminal or to see reporter Lydia Gyles jumping out of it with a microphone in-hand and a cameraman behind her.

"Hey," Abbey called out to her husband as she sprinted up the escalator. "Sorry I'm late."

"I was starting to think you stood me up."

"I had a hundred errands to run."

"Did you drop the girls off at your mother's?"

"No, I stowed them away in my bag.

"Sarcasm does not become you, Abigail."

As they continued towards the baggage screening area, a woman's voice shouted from behind. "Dr. Bartlet!"

Jed and Abbey both turned, answering simultaneously. "Yes?"

"Dr. Abbey Bartlet." Lydia approached. "I'm wondering if I could ask you a few questions."

"I'm sorry. We have to catch a flight."

Ignoring Abbey's rejection, Lydia passed the couple and ambushed them in front. "Arlene Niederlander isn't the first person to sue you for malpractice. You were named in a suit six years ago when you were a resident. Can you tell us anything about..."

"No comment." Jed cut her off. With his arm tightly around Abbey's waist, he led his wife towards the screeners.

Lydia refused to get out of the way. "I'm working on a story..."

It was Abbey's turn to jump in this time. "I know what you're working on and as I've already told you, I'm not going to answer your questions."

The Bartlets made it a point to walk around Lydia, snubbing her photographer on the way.

As they entered the restricted screening area, Jed reassured Abbey. "She's fishing. You know that."

"Six years ago? She's bringing up something that happened six years ago? Jed, I was only named in that suit because I happened to be on-call that night. All I did in that surgery was hold the retractor. I had nothing to do with..."

"I know. I know."

"Why would she care? Why would anyone care? It isn't like my mistakes have anything at all to do with you or how good a representative you'd be."

"It's not about that, Abbey. Lydia Gyles is from Channel 7. They're the biggest joke in town. She's stuck at an independent station that can barely afford a news truck, let alone all the other gizmos Channel 9 has. So she latches on to a nothing story, hoping to turn it into something and make a name for herself. It's her only prayer of getting out of Manchester and snagging a gig at a bigger market and a better station."

"How do you know all this?"

"Christine told me. This is how these media types work. Lydia sensationalizes a few stories, slaps them on a tape and sends them out to news directors at real stations."

"Did Christine also tell you how to turn her off this story?"

"Until she gets burned, there's nothing we can do." He turned to her then, tucked a finger under her chin, and lifted her head. "But don't worry about it. No one takes her seriously. There's nothing she could possibly dig up about these malpractice suits that could hurt either one of us. You know that, right?"

Abbey nodded sadly. "This is what politics is all about?"

"You want out?"

"Not on your life. Lydia Gyles isn't going to scare us away." She took his hand as they left the screening checkpoint. "Let's go."

* * *

Leo circled the hallway outside his mother-in-law's Chicago apartment. He raised his hand to knock on the door, but stopped just before his knuckles hit the frame. He was nervous about seeing Jenny. The two hadn't had a civil conversation since the weekend at Acadia, so when she called him at work and asked him to stop by, his mind raced with possibilities.

At first, he assumed she wanted to ask him for a divorce. But she could have done that over the phone, he reasoned. Then, he thought maybe she wanted to let him see Mallory. But she probably would have done that on the weekend, not at 8:00 in the evening on a school night. The only other conclusion he could reach was that Jenny was ready to move back home, that she wanted a reconciliation just as desperately as he did.

He took a deep breath and finally, he knocked.

"Hi, Leo." Jenny greeted him by peeking through a crack in the door before slowly opening it to let him in.

Leo scanned the faces in the room - Jed and Abbey, his sisters Josie and Beth, his colleague Ryan, and another man, one he had never seen before. All of them stood with somber expressions staring right at him.

"What is this, a party?" he asked jokingly to break the tension he felt right away.

"It's not a party," Jenny answered. "It's an intervention."

TBC


	9. Chapter 9

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 9

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Leo was ambushed by his friends and family; during a camping trip at Acadia, Mallory found herself struggling to stay above water when she and Ellie snuck off to go swimming after Leo drank himself to sleep (chapter 3 of this story); Jed told Leo he was concerned about his drinking while Abbey found out Jenny was dragging Leo to a rehab center in Switzerland (chapter 7 of Checkmate)

Summary: Leo's intervention spirals out of control

AN: On the show, Leo's sister's name is Elizabeth, but to avoid confusion with Elizabeth Bartlet, her name is Beth in this series

* * *

Leo scanned the faces in the room - Jed and Abbey, his sisters Josie and Beth, his colleague Ryan, and another man, one he had never seen before. All of them stood with somber expressions staring right at him.

"What is this, a party?" he asked jokingly to break the tension he felt right away.

"It's not a party," Jenny answered. "It's an intervention."

"An intervention?" He must have misunderstood what she said, he thought. "What do you mean an intervention?"

Jenny covered her mouth with her fingers and turned to the stranger standing beside her. "Was I supposed to...?"

"It's okay," the man said. "Leo, I'm Dr. Anthony Glass. I'm a psychiatrist."

"That's great, but what are you doing here?"

"He's a friend of mine from med school, Leo," Abbey informed him. "I'm the one who called him. He's an addiction counselor here in Chicago and he's here to observe and to assist if things get out of hand."

"Get out of hand? What the hell is going on here?" A confused Leo looked at his wife. "Jenny?"

"We think you need help," she answered, her tone laced with apprehension.

"You're right, I do. I need your help. I need you back."

"No. I meant you need professional help...for your drinking."

"Oh, you've gotta be kidding me. This is some kind of joke."

"No, it's not."

Leo circled the room, examining each and every guest standing before him. His eyes rested on Josephine. "Josie."

He hadn't seen Josie in a decade, not since the day Mallory was born. She called now and then, sent birthday and Christmas presents, but she rejected numerous invitations to visit her brother's family. Seeing her now, after all this time and for this reason, fueled Leo's resentment.

"Hi, Leo."

"Why am I not surprised that this is kind of thing that would bring you here? Never miss a good show, right?"

"Leave her alone," Beth interjected. "We're here because we care about you. We want to help."

"This is a bunch of bull." Leo turned from his sisters to face Jenny. "Jenn, what you and I need is time to talk things out. Tell all these people to leave and we can talk...really talk."

"I can't do that."

"Sure you can."

Anthony approached the couple. "Leo, we're staying. We're all staying."

"Look, I don't know why Jenny gathered you all here, but the last thing in the world I need is a house full of people telling me what's wrong with me."

"That isn't what's going to happen."

"Oh no? They're not here to tell me how I've screwed up their lives? They're not here to whine and sob and make me see the error of my ways so that I can seek the help I so desperately need before I hurt myself or someone near and dear to me? Come on."

"It's not going to be like that, Leo," Anthony insisted, his voice just as strong as Leo's. "We're not filming an episode of Oprah. These people are here because they love you. They're here because they want you to see what you're doing to yourself...to your life."

"My life is just fine."

"No, it's not," Josie argued. "You're an alcoholic just like Dad."

It was a little more blunt than Leo was expecting, even from Josie. Beth nudged her, but Josie held her ground, refusing to lose eye contact with her brother, even when he closed the space between them.

"What do you know about me? WHAT? Let's not pretend we're something we're not, Josie. Let's not fool these people into thinking we're a close and loving family and that your only interest in being here is my health or my marriage."

Anthony had a hand on Leo's shoulder. "Take it easy, Leo."

Fuming, Leo spun around towards the doctor and violently shrugged out of his hold. "DON'T TELL ME TO TAKE IT EASY!" His chest was puffing with anger and after he took a deep breath, he said, "I want everyone out. I want to talk to my wife...alone."

"We're not playing by your rules anymore. These people came a long way for this and you're going to hear what they have to say. No one is leaving."

"You're wrong about that. I'm leaving." Leo rushed past the crowd, but just as his hand hit the doorknob, Jenny's voice stopped him dead in his tracks.

"LEO!" He could hear her anguish when she called his name. All the heartache she was feeling on the inside suddenly came bubbling through her steel armor. "Please don't go. Do this for me."

"Do what, Jenny?" He twisted his head to see her. She looked vulnerable. Scared. "An intervention?"

"I know I tricked you to get you here, but I wouldn't have done that if I wasn't desperate to make you face what you're doing...to yourself and to us."

"This isn't the way to make a point. All this is going to do is end in bitterness and hostility."

"You don't know that. Please, Leo. We've tried everything over the years. Please stay here and let Dr. Glass help. Let Jed and Abbey and Beth and Josie and Ryan all help. If you stay, we'll talk afterwards, I promise."

Ever since Acadia, she had cut him off. Now she was opening the channels of communication and all he had to do was participate in this experiment. Leo didn't know much about interventions. He had read about a couple, heard about them on television, but he didn't know the nuts and bolts of what was about to happen. Still, he assumed it would pass quicker if he could find a way to just grin and bear it.

He struggled with his options before, to Jenny's relief, he moved away from the door. "Fine. What do I do?"

Anthony addressed Ryan. "As Leo's colleague, do you want to start? How does Leo's drinking affect his job?"

It took Ryan several minutes to answer that loaded question. He was Leo's confidante, his sounding board when times were rough at the office. Being here felt like a betrayal to him as much as it did to Jed. He cleared his throat, then stepped forward.

Speaking softly, Ryan recalled the times he found Leo slumped over his desk early in the morning, too early for anyone to believe he had actually gone home the night before. He was a functional alcoholic and his drinking rarely affected his work, but that didn't stop the whispering behind his back. Leo was a private man, Ryan said. He never shared his troubles at home, so his colleagues were left to listen to the rumors, to believe that it was problems within his marriage that drove him to the bottle.

"Everyone thought that drinking was an escape for you. A few of us wondered how bad your family life had to be to make you do this to yourself. Every time you walked into a meeting, disheveled and hungover, it tarnished your credibility. There were times I wondered why you still had a job, Leo. I'm ashamed to say this, but I think the reason you never got fired is because the blame was shifted from you to Jenny, at least subconsciously around the office."

That assumption crushed Jenny. She swiped a tear from her lashes before it tracked down her cheek, then stood stoically, unwilling to exchange Leo's stare.

Josie and Beth picked up where Ryan left off. Their words sounded promising at first. Flattering, in fact. They told stories of the boy they admired when they were young, of the older brother they looked up to, the protector who always looked out for them on the playground.

And then, with a forlorn glance at the man they were talking about, Josie suddenly switched gears. She introduced everyone to her memories of their father's drunken stupors and weekend binges that frequently ended in violent family fights. Even Jenny hadn't heard some of these haunting tales. She clenched her eyes shut and curled her fingers as she imagined the horror Leo must have lived with as a young boy.

The details were sketchy in her mind, Beth told them, but she remembered that Leo was the mediator. He usually took the brunt of his father's anger to protect his mother and his sisters, and that fateful night when the elder McGarry took his own life, Beth wasn't shocked that instead of shedding tears with the rest of the family, Leo drowned his sorrows in a bottle of Scotch.

"That's the first time I saw you drunk," Beth told her brother. "You screamed at me to get out of your room and when I stalled, you chased me out. I don't think you'll ever know what that did to me. Our father had just died and I looked to my big brother for comfort and instead, I found a carbon copy of Dad, raging temper and all. I haven't said this until now, but after that night, I never looked at you the same. How could I? Every time I looked at you, I saw him."

"I still can't look at you without seeing him," Josie added. "You may not be a violent drunk, but the fact remains, you're a drunk...a disgusting, selfish drunk who doesn't care about anything but when to take his next drink. You're your father's son, Leo. You always have been."

After Josie and Beth were finished, all eyes turned to Jed. His head was down and his hands were stuffed in his pockets. Abbey slipped her fingers into the crook of his arm, but Jed never acknowledged the nudge. He stayed that way, in silence, while his mind battled his heart.

Leo was hurt by what Ryan, Josie, and Beth had said. They were ganging up on him in a cruel confrontation that Jed wished he could end. It took a lot for him to reach into the depths of his soul and realize that this was exactly what Leo needed. Kicking him when he was down was unthinkable, but defending him to the others the way Jed had done so many times in the past wasn't possible this time. It would only serve to excuse his alcoholism and to persuade everyone, including Leo, that the intervention was a waste of time.

Jed had to do this. For Leo's sake, he had to participate.

"It numbs you," he began. "After you got back from Vietnam, you said that alcohol numbs you. We all should have known then that you weren't dealing with the stress of the emotional aftermath in a healthy way."

Tilting his head back, Leo let out a sigh. He had been waiting for Jed to take his turn, certain that he could count on his old friend to bring everyone back to their senses, but as soon as Jed uttered those first few words, Leo retreated into a steel wall of denial and convinced himself that Jed's loyalties had changed. He expected it from his sisters. He didn't even blink when it came from Ryan. This was different. For Leo, the prick of this betrayal was much, much worse.

"From the day I met you, Leo," Jed continued. "You looked like you had everything together. You knew what you wanted out of life and you weren't afraid to work for it. There was never a doubt in my mind that you'd succeed at anything you put your mind to because you were Leo McGarry. Confident, organized, intelligent...you were unstoppable. So when Jenny first told me she was worried about your drinking, I brushed her off. Leo was too smart to let himself fall into the same trap his father did, I thought. You said that you didn't have a problem and I believed you. Then, three years ago, I came home after taking Ellie's Girl Scout troop camping. I had asked you to stay with Abbey that weekend because she was sick. Remember? When I walked into the kitchen, you and Abbey had fallen asleep at the table. You had been drinking...a lot. I asked you about it later, but you gave me some song and dance and though, this time, I didn't really believe you, I thought it would be easier to just accept your excuse and move on. I did that so many times, Leo and every time I did, it ate away - bit by bit - at the trust I had in you. I was floored by how easy it was for you to look me in the eye and flat-out lie to me, especially after I went to bat for you over and over again with Abbey and Jenny. I defended you to the point where Abbey and I even argued about it. At the reception after Ellie's first communion, you snapped at Mallory because she wanted a sip of your punch, or what she thought was punch. I knew what you had in your cup and I called you on it. You admitted it. You said you just wanted a drink. I told you I was worried about the fact that you ALWAYS want a drink. I said I was here if you wanted my help with anything. That was your way out, your way to redeem yourself and make me believe in you again. But you just ignored me."

For the first time since the intervention officially began, Leo interrupted. "I ignored you because I didn't want your help. And I still don't."

Jed didn't allow the resentful tone to stop him. "You have a problem with alcohol. I'm more convinced of that than I am of anything else in this world."

"Then you're a fool," Leo muttered too softly for anyone to hear.

"What?"

"I said you're a fool." He repeated himself louder. "You're listening to these people because it's the easy thing to do. Instead of thinking for yourself, you're going to believe any line they feed you."

"I believe it too, Leo," Abbey said.

"Well, now that's a shocker," Leo grumbled sarcastically. "You've believed it all along, haven't you, Abbey? Jed just told everyone that you've been on my case for years about this. You've been trying to persuade him that I'm a drunk. Don't tell me you aren't the one who's been whispering in Jenny's ear as well, telling her I'm an alcoholic, that I need professional help. I'll bet you were the one responsible for the trip to Switzerland a couple of years ago."

That accusation was unexpected. Jed and Abbey began to dispute him, but before they could, Jenny jumped in, her voice so loud, it overpowered everyone else's.

"That isn't true, Leo! I'm the one who decided to take you to the facility Switzerland. Don't blame Abbey for that. She didn't even know about it until right before we left. Abbey has nothing to do with this."

"She orchestrated this! She's the one who invited the shrink!"

"At my suggestion!"

"Jenny, it's all right," Abbey said mildly. "You're right, Leo. I suspected you had a problem with booze for quite a while and I did talk to Jed about it. I wanted him to open his eyes because I thought that maybe you'd listen to him. God knows you weren't listening to Jenny even though she did everything she could to get through to you."

"You have no idea what's gone on between me and Jenny," Leo barked.

"Maybe not, but I do know that you're on a dangerous path. And if you don't acknowledge it soon, you're going to lose everyone you care about. That's why I invited Anthony tonight. I thought we could use his expertise. He's done this numerous times before."

Leo glared at Anthony. "Really? Is this how it always is - the so-called drunk standing here all alone, everyone else standing there, drilling into his head what a worthless human being he is until he breaks down and gives up trying to explain him."

He was using the self-pity tactic now, a strategy Anthony had heard from countless alcoholics before him. "This isn't about explaining yourself."

"Even in a court of law, you have the right to defend yourself."

"This isn't a court of law."

"Then why am I being treated like a criminal?"

"I don't believe you are being treated like a criminal. You are, however, being treated like an alcoholic, one who's oblivious to the pain he's caused all these people. Do you want them to just abandon their feelings and leave you alone? Do you think you have the right to hurt them the way you have?"

"I haven't done a damn thing."

"Of course you have! Didn't you listen to anything they said?"

"I haven't hurt anyone." A rosy hue staining his cheeks, Leo squashed his emotions and continued, more belligerent than he was a second earlier. "And what the hell do you know about my life?"

"Like the old saying goes, the best way to know a man is by what others say about him."

"Screw that! All I've ever done is try to be a good friend, a good brother, a good husband and father. I would never hurt these people. And despite their attitudes here today, they know..."

"The only thing they know is that they can't trust you because all you do is lie to them. You don't have the guts to admit that you're in over your head."

"I'm not..."

"Yes, you are. You're lying to them right now and they know it. Look at them. Look at their faces, look into their eyes, see their disappointment, feel their frustration. They respected you once upon a time, they adored you, they thought you hung the moon, but now...look at them. You're sinking so far into denial, you can't even see how much they pity you."

"This is such crap."

"It's not, Leo. Why is it easier for you to lie than admit you have a problem?"

"I'm not lying. I'm trying to..."

"You're avoiding the question."

"I'M NOT AVOIDING THE QUESTION! LET ME FINISH MY GODDAMN SENTENCE!"

In the corner, a misty-eyed Jenny sympathized with her husband. From his point of view, it was as if everyone he loved had turned on him. He looked and sounded wounded. Beaten. Defenseless. There had to be a better way to get through to him, she thought.

"What do you want to say, Leo?" she asked.

"Jenny." Anthony cautioned her.

Jenny turned on him with a resolve so clear, Anthony knew she was crumbling. "Abbey invited you here to observe, not to interfere. You're making this worse than it has to be."

"This is how it's done, Mrs. McGarry."

"Not in my house, it's not. I'd appreciate it if you'd let us handle it from here."

"You shouldn't be doing this on your own. He's agitated..."

"I know what he is and I know how to handle him."

"You're not a professional."

"Would you please leave? I'd like to talk to my husband."

Abbey stepped up behind her and whispered, "Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"Yes," Jenny snapped.

Abbey gestured to her friend. Everyone watched quietly as Anthony backed away from the McGarrys. Just as he left through the front door, Jenny took Leo's hand. Josie and Beth left immediately afterwards, followed by Ryan. Only Jed and Abbey stayed behind to see what Jenny had planned.

"I'm listening to what you want to say," she said to her husband.

Leo swallowed hard in an effort to bury the hostility Anthony had provoked. When he was calm again, he said, "I know I have a problem. I'm fixing it."

"How?"

"I haven't had a drink since the weekend at Acadia. I'm attending AA meetings. I'm going to beat it this time, Jenny. No more excuses. No more drinks."

"That's what you always say."

"It's different. After what happened with Mallory...it shook me up, it changed me. I'm not the person I was before. You have to believe me."

"I believe that you mean what you're saying. I just think that after this is all over, you won't be able to resist."

"I will." Leo covered her hands with his. "This is it. I swear to you, this is it. After what happened, I vowed to never touch that stuff again. I'll never put you - or Mallory - through that kind of thing ever again."

"I want so badly to believe you, Leo."

"Then do it. Give me one more chance. If I don't come through, leave me and take Mal."

"I don't know if I have any more chances left in me," she cried.

"Yes, you do. I know you do because this time, I'm fighting for our marriage, for our family. Come to the AA meetings with me, send a spy to check on me at work, test my breath every night when I come home. If I slip even once, I won't stop you from doing what you have to do. I won't fight you."

Jenny believed if there was anything that could lure Leo out of his disease, it was the thought of losing his family. If only the disease was that easily controlled. With optimism and hope twinkling in her expression, she looked up at Jed and Abbey.

"I want to trust him."

Abbey approached slowly. "Let me just say this, not as your friend, but as a doctor. AA, by itself, isn't the way to do it. It's a support group designed for people who've already been through rehab. In my professional opinion, that's what Leo needs."

Leo cut her off. "I'm not going to rehab."

"We already made an appointment for you at a rehab facility here in town."

He turned to Jenny for answers. "We?"

"I did," Jenny replied. "I went back to the apartment this afternoon and packed your things. They're expecting you."

Leo stood then, a bit of anger resurfacing. "You shouldn't have done that. I'm not going."

"Think about it," Jenny pleaded, standing alongside him. "It might be the best thing for us. This way, we'll be sure that what we're doing is the right way to do it."

"NO! I know what I need to do and I'm doing it. I've already seen the shrinks...in Switzerland...and it did no good. I want to do it my way this time. All rehab is going to do is drive an even bigger wedge between us, Jenn."

Jenny's determination began to waver. She was plummeting to the same place Jed had been caught all these years, trying to sort out truth from fiction. Jed examined her body language, then followed Leo's actions. Every second that Jenny faltered made Leo even stronger and as much as it hurt Jed to admit it, the stronger Leo was, the more susceptible Jenny was to his denials and excuses.

"Jenny hasn't said anything yet," Jed boldly declared.

"What?" Leo questioned him.

"Jenny hasn't told you how your drinking affects her and Mallory. I think that's an important part of this exercise."

"What makes you an expert on what's important about this exercise?"

"I'm not an expert. I'm just a guy listening. I listened to everything that happened here today and as much as I want to believe that you can do this on your own, Leo, I'm just not sold."

"I'm not asking for your support, Jed. You've already made your position crystal clear. This is between me and Jenny now. I don't need anything more from you."

His response stung, but Jed shrugged it off. "Jenny is the one who asked us to come."

"Well now, she wants you to leave."

Jed stared at Jenny. "So is that it? You asked for our help, you made it sound like you were finished with his laundry list of excuses, and now that you got us all on-board, you're caving before you have your say?"

"Jed." Abbey put her hand on his shoulder to calm him.

"Seriously, Jenny, what the hell was the point of any of this? We showed up, we did exactly what you and Dr. Glass told us to do, despite our own reservations..."

"You never had any reservations," Leo scoffed. "You've been wanting to pound into me since Acadia. Doing it in this environment, where you had all this back-up and where I was forbidden from defending myself, must have made you feel really powerful."

"You could have defended yourself at Acadia. But you didn't. You walked away."

"Excuse me if I didn't follow Jed Bartlet protocol. My daughter nearly drowned."

"And whose fault was that?" Jed surprised even himself with that remark.

Stabbed by the agonizing pain of the truth, Leo took a step back. In a low, deliberate tone, he said, "It was an accident."

"One caused by your drinking," Jed returned in a similar tone. "God Leo, can't you see it? What the hell is the matter with you that you're so blind to what could have happened?"

"I KNOW what could have happened!"

"Then why aren't you doing something about it? If I did what you did...if I was so powerless over an addiction that I jeopardized my kid's life, I would run, not walk, to someone...anyone...who could help me!"

"This is none of your business."

"It IS my business because that was my daughter you were supposed to be watching! It could just as easily have been Ellie in that water." The anger he had been suppressing unleashed itself full force.

"It wasn't."

"No, it wasn't. But that one incident, that one lapse in judgment or whatever else you want to call it, proved to me, once and for all, that I'm not dealing with the Leo McGarry I used to know. It destroyed any trust I had left in you. I'll never leave my girls with you again, and if I was Jenny, I wouldn't leave Mallory in your care until I was sure you were willing to get the help you need. And if you refused rehab, then I would sue for sole custody before you could say AA!"

Jed regretted that. Almost instantly, he wanted to take back the implication that Leo was an unfit father, and had it not been for the quick response by Leo, then Jenny, he just might have. The slamming punch of reality knocked the wind out of Leo. He charged towards Jed, but Jenny intervened before he reached his target.

"I think we better stop this right now," she said to both men.

"Jenny's right," Abbey agreed, urging Jed to back off. "This has gotten way out of hand. We need some space to breath. I think Jed and I better go."

"That's the best idea I've heard all day," Leo growled.

Jed eased out of Abbey's grip. "Leo..." He walked closer, cautiously. "This isn't how this was supposed to happen. We all showed up here to help you, not to hurt you."

"I don't want to hear anything you have to say. I don't want to hear your voice or see your face ever again."

It wasn't just Jed on his mind. From what his sisters said to what Ryan shared to Dr. Glass and Abbey, Leo was still reeling from it all. He lowered his head and stared up at Jed through a pair of narrow eyes and in a deep, unrecognizable voice, he replied angrily.

"Get out of my house."

There was no doubt he was serious. He had been punched in the gut a hundred times over in less than an hour and his wounds were still raw. He couldn't be expected to talk rationally, not now at least. Jed didn't fight the rejection. Instead, he gave his friend a nod, backed up, and took Abbey's hand as they left the apartment.

TBC


	10. Chapter 10

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 10

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Leo's intervention spiraled out of control when Jenny lost her nerve; Abbey met with her ex-boyfriend Ron Ehrlich, the head of the New England Small Business Association, to try to get an endorsement for Jed (Chapter 8); a reporter from Channel 7 ambushed Abbey at the airport (Chapter 8)

Summary: Tempers flare; Elliot Roush proposes new legislation in a veiled attempt to target Abbey

* * *

Jed and Abbey arrived in Manchester early the next morning after a quiet flight back from Chicago. It was only after they reached the airport that Jed was ready to discuss the failed intervention and Jenny's part in what could have been the turning point in Leo's life.

Filled with frustration, he counted on Abbey for support on the drive home. "I'm not saying it was her fault and I'm not saying I'm pissed that she didn't tell him what his drinking does to her. What I'm saying is the whole exercise was a futile effort without Jenny to cap it off. She was the only one who could have made the difference."

"I know."

"If it was you and me and you told me how badly my drinking hurt you, that would have cut me to my core, Abbey. It's one thing for the rest of us to say it. It's something entirely different when the woman he's pledged his life to says it. That would have eaten away at Leo."

"I know."

"So you agree?"

"You know I do."

He paused for a moment, then expressed the slightest amount of insecurity. "Do you think we did the right thing?"

'Yes," she answered without hesitating. "We did exactly what we had to do."

"How can you be so sure of that? Jenny knows him better than anyone. If she didn't back us up, how do you know that what we did wasn't a mistake?"

"Jed, Leo is an alcoholic. I know that, you know that, his sisters know that, his colleagues know that, and Jenny...despite her denials...Jenny knows that. We didn't make a mistake. We did what had to be done. We were fighting an uphill battle the minute Jenny felt guilty about what we were doing, but we had to see it through."

"So you blame Jenny?"

"As crazy as it sounds, I don't." Her eyes met Jed's confused stare. "A few minutes ago, you proposed a scenario with us as Leo and Jenny. Imagine if I was the Leo in our marriage and our friends staged an intervention. If I was feeling as defenseless as Leo probably felt during it, can you honestly tell me you wouldn't step in to shield me from it?"

"Not if you had a problem." An optimistic response. Jed knew, deep down, he would have been tempted to do exactly what Jenny did if Abbey was taking on the brunt of an intervention.

"Well, I don't believe that."

"You shouldn't," he agreed. "I'd like to think the most important thing to me would be you getting the help you needed. But I saw Leo's face. If you ever looked at me like that, I'd steamroll everyone to get you out of there. I'd do whatever I had to to help you."

"I know you would. That's why I don't blame Jenny."

"I felt so guilty about what we did, Abbey. A part of me wanted to counter all the rotten things I said to him by telling him how much I love, admire, and respect him. I was so close to doing it too."

"What stopped you?"

"I realized what you and Jenny have been pounding in my head all these years was right. This was the only way to convince Leo."

"Yes, it was. Jenny knows that too. Somewhere, in her heart, she knows it. I think the intervention was much more painful than she thought it would be, and unfortunately, until she's ready to do whatever it takes, our hands are tied."

Once he parked the car at the top of the drive, Jed jumped out of the driver's seat to unload the overnight bag they had taken with them, then he followed Abbey into the house. She headed towards the coat closet to hang up her jacket while Jed made a beeline for the answering machine on the end table in the living room.

The first message was from Abbey's mother, Mary.

"Abbey, dear, it's Mom," she said. "The girls and I are having such a good time, I'd like to keep them for the whole weekend if that's okay. Give me a call."

"Not this weekend," Abbey shouted out to her husband, leaving the foyer to climb the stairs. "Ellie has a history project I need to help her with and Lizzie has three tests on Monday."

"I'll call and tell her," Jed replied, slipping out of his jacket and unloading the bag as he listened to the next message.

"Jed, Derek here. I hate that you're unreachable. You need to call me the second you get back from Chicago. The SBA is rethinking their endorsement and we need you to sit down with Ron Ehrlich some time this weekend."

Jed shook his head. He hadn't even talked to Ron the first time around. That was Derek's job and Jed gladly let him do it. After all, the relationship between himself and Ehrlich was born out of a rivalry for Abbey's affection and though that was 20 years earlier, asking his wife's ex-boyfriend for an endorsement just rubbed him the wrong way. The implication that he needed Ron made him uncomfortable and, for that reason, Derek was the one he sent to seek the endorsement.

He walked over to the sofa and sat down to untie his shoe laces while waiting to hear the next message.

"Abbey, it's Ron."

Jed snapped his head up, his eyes now smoldering with curiosity as he stood up and approached the answering machine.

"You left behind your pager at the restaurant. I considered dropping it off at the hospital, but I didn't want to do that without letting you know."

He didn't listen to another word. He didn't have to. Instead, he stopped the machine and raced upstairs.

"Abbey?" he called out as he hit the top landing and made the turn towards the master bedroom.

"Yeah?" Abbey had changed into her baby blue silk robe. Her hair was in a loose ponytail and she had just drawn a hot bath.

"You met with Ron Ehrlich?"

That was the last thing she expected. Looking up from her armoire, she waited a beat, then took out a pair of pantyhose. "I had lunch with Ron, yes."

"Turns out you left your beeper with him. He called."

"I had lunch with him," she repeated.

"To talk to him about an endorsement." It wasn't a question.

Lying wasn't an option. "To ask him to consider the possibility."

"How could you do that?" His tone was sharp.

Instinctively, Abbey became a bit defensive. "The SBA is endorsing candidates right and left, Jed. Pretty soon, they're going to make a decision about this race and you want to know how I could whisper in Ron's ear that they should consider endorsing you? I think the appropriate question is how could I not?"

"Ron already knows I'm running. He turned us down. For you to go behind my back and ask him again...it...it belittles me. It makes it look like I'm begging. It makes it look like YOU'RE begging on my behalf, which is even worse. "

"I wasn't begging. Ron was too focused on the dairy farmers. All I asked him to do is look at the bigger picture."

"You shouldn't have done it," Jed snapped at her. "It's not your place."

"It's not my place?" That reaction stung Abbey. "What is my place? To stand beside you and be seen and not heard?"

"You know that isn't what I mean! How's it going to look when it turns out I won an endorsement because my wife asked her ex for a favor?"

"It wasn't a favor. Ron doesn't owe me a damn thing. He met with me out of respect for our friendship...our old friendship, the one that disappeared when you and I got married."

"You're blaming me for that?"

Abbey breathed deeply and said, "That's not what I said. But it's true, isn't it, that the subject of Ron Ehrlich is a point of contention between us?"

"No, that is not true."

"Jed..."

"It's NOT! One time, I said something stupid in London. I told you that it was inappropriate for you to see Ron. I apologized for that and I never said it again, so don't make it sound like you were forced to end your friendship because of your jealous, overbearing, controlling husband."

"I never said that! I never even thought it!"

"I'm not going to stand here and argue the past with you. This is about you going behind my back to snag an endorsement I don't even want."

"Since when do you not want it? You're just upset because it's Ron. If it was anyone else, it wouldn't be this big a deal."

He didn't deny it. "You made me look like an idiot."

"No, I didn't. I gave him a rundown of the issues close to your heart, I reminded him why two separate districts sent you to the state house for a total of four terms, and I defended some of your votes as a state legislator."

"Who the hell asked you to do that?"

"No one had to ask me, Jed. Ron's been a friend of my family's for ages. I knew he'd listen to what I had to say."

"Oh, well then, by all means, throw caution to the wind and cash in every favor he owes you."

"I'm only going to say this once more. It was not a favor. He admitted that he had dismissed you from the start and he promised that he'd review your campaign literature with an open mind."

"You really have no idea how this works, do you?"

"You're right. I'm so small-time, I have no idea how candidates get their endorsements. The public maneuvering and political jargon goes way over my head. I'm so clueless about everything, it's a wonder you even let me out of the box."

Misdirection. He always hated it when she did that. "Don't turn this around, Abbey! You know what I'm talking about."

"Like it or not, the SBA will hand down an endorsement eventually and the small businesses in this district are likely to listen to whomever they support. Who the hell cares what it takes to get them to support you so long as they do?"

"I care! The media will care when people start snickering that I couldn't get an endorsement on my own and had to send my wife to do it for me!"

"That won't happen."

"What if I did this to you? If I charged into the hospital and demanded that they make you Chief of Surgery and then said 'gee, Abbey, as long as you got your promotion, who cares what it takes,' you wouldn't rip me a new one the second I got home?"

"That's different." She dismissed him with a shake of her head as she turned towards the bathroom.

"No, it's not." he followed her in.

Abbey kneeled down to feel the water in the tub. "You were going to allow an SBA endorsement to slip through your fingers because you were too proud to meet with Ron Ehrlich."

"Who told you that?"

"No one told me. I put the pieces together myself. Don't you think I checked with Derek? You refused Ron's help and that's why Derek talked to him instead. That's why you lost the endorsement. Had you done it yourself, you could have convinced Ron."

"I chose to staff it out to Derek. It was my choice. I still get to make my own choices."

"Regardless of how bad they are," she mumbled. "I did my research too, Jed. I wanted you to have every advantage in this election. Endorsements are about who you know these days and Elliot Roush knows a lot of influential people. You and I know Ron Ehrlich. Why shouldn't we ask him to back you the way Roush has asked his associates?"

"I didn't realize you were the expert now." He stormed out of the bathroom and this time, she was the one following.

"Don't you get it? While you're pouting about the fact that the game isn't played the way you want it to be played, Elliot Roush is bagging votes."

"Yeah, I wasn't aware of that, thanks," he replied sarcastically as he headed out of the bedroom and pounded each and every step on the way downstairs.

Abbey trailed behind. "There are only a few weeks left before election day. You don't get that many chances to prove who you are. Fundraising is a big deal, support in the press is a big deal, endorsements are a big deal." She picked up a piece of paper on the table in the foyer and handed it to him.

"What's this?"

"A list of endorsements Roush has lined up. I got it from Derek."

"I've got endorsements too."

"Only because of Derek. You never met with the Paternal Order of Police, the firefighters association, or a host of other organizations. All these groups are going to endorse someone and if you just open your mouth, they'll know you're the guy."

"I DID meet with them. I told him what I was all about and I left it at that. If they want to support me, they will. I don't like begging people to help me."

"You're an Ivy League professor, a Nobel Laureate with a Mensa-level IQ. How can you be this naive? You're digging yourself a hole you can't climb out of."

It wasn't naiveté that hindered Jed. It was the sour taste of the political catfight he had been forced to consume on a daily basis. "Did it ever occur to you that I know exactly what I'm doing? Or does Derek have you so brainwashed that you don't believe me in anymore?"

"How is anyone supposed to believe in you when you don't even believe in yourself?" The pained expression on his face told her that line was one step too far. "I do believe in you. I just wonder if you're doing what you're doing because you think it's best or because you no longer want to win."

"That's it exactly. I wanna lose. You know me so well."

She sighed angrily as she walked in front of him. "You're fighting with your staff, yelling at them, telling them they don't know what they're doing. They DO know what they're doing, Jed. They're professionals. They're trying to help you, but every time you blow up at them, you're sending them a message loud and clear. I'm beginning to think they want this much more than you do."

"Because I'm not willing to get down in the dirt? I expect this from Derek and Christine. I didn't expect it from you. You go right ahead and follow their lead, write up phony letters to the editor, call dozens of people every day and beg them for their money, parade around at every luncheon in New England, hoping that people will pay to share a memorable two seconds shaking your hand, sneak around with your ex-boyfriends, sneak around with every last one of them..."

"Excuse me, sneak around?"

"Ask them for endorsements and whatever the hell else my staff wants you to do."

"I don't sneak around. The only reason I didn't tell you about Ron is because I knew you wouldn't be rational about it. And for the record, your staff didn't ask me to meet with Ron. I did it on my own."

"Good. Then you can call him on your own and tell him to forget it."

"No."

"Abbey..."

"I'm not going to call him off just because you're angry. Once you cool off and think about it, then we can talk and, after that, if you still want me to do it, then I will."

"There's nothing to talk about! You were wrong. End of story!" He stood there, exasperated at her stubborn demeanor. "You know what, do what you want. I don't give a damn." He started towards the front door.

"Where are you going?"

"To tell Derek to take Ehrlich's endorsement and shove it up his ass! Better yet, maybe I'll bypass that little chore and close up shop, drop out of the race. Let the democrats nominate someone who's better at playing the game."

"Jed!"

"You had your say, Abbey. I don't want to discuss it anymore," he said as he opened the door.

"Don't let the fact that you're pissed at me force you to do something you can't take back!"

He slammed the door and spun around fiercely. "What makes you think I'd want to take it back? Do you think I'd bail if I wasn't certain that's what I wanted to do?"

"You accepted the nomination. If you drop out now, Roush wins for sure."

"That's right, he does. And everyone's banking on my loyalty to the party. They push and push and push and I have to stand here smiling like the village idiot because they know they've got me by the you know what. There's not a damn thing I can do to get out of this situation."

"Situation?" It saddened her to hear him call it that. "You were so excited about this campaign. You WANTED to win. When the primaries started, you looked me in the eye and you said you were going to do whatever it took to beat Elliot Roush because 'the people who voted him into office enjoyed the comfort of his prejudicial opinions without the comfort of thought for the alternative.' You quoted Kennedy as if that quote was made to describe Elliot Roush. What happened to that spark, to that fire that forced people to stand up and take notice?"

"It extinguished right around the time you lost all faith in me," he shot back bitterly before he charged out the door.

Abbey didn't try stop him this time. She hadn't lost faith in him and it broke her heart that one ill-conceived effort to get him an endorsement convinced him that she had. She knew what she had to do to prove she was in his corner. She just hoped it was enough.

* * *

"What do you want to do about the VA?" Larry wedged himself between the half dozen filing cabinets crowding the door to Derek's office.

"What do you mean?" Derek looked up from his desk.

"He's double-booked for Monday."

"What else is there?"

"Opening of the Ag Expo."

"Damn it, that's important to the farmers."

"The place will be crawling with them. We want him meeting as many as possible."

"Scheduling doesn't know their heads from their asses. Screw the VA. We'll make it up to them next week. Give the green light for the Ag Expo. And make sure they don't set anything up for this weekend until we hear from Jed. We're leaving the schedule wide open until we know when he's sitting down with Ehrlich."

"He's not," Jed announced from the doorway. "I'm not meeting with Ron Ehrlich."

"It's important, Jed."

"Ehrlich had his chance to back me and he turned us down."

"There's no time for vanity."

"It's not vanity. Someone got to Ehrlich and persuaded him to give me another chance. The only reason he agreed was as a favor to someone else. Now I don't know about you, but winning an endorsement that way seems a little disingenuous to me and in the long run, it could do more harm than good."

"Who is this someone?" Larry asked.

"Don't worry about it."

"I'm going to be the voice of reason here," Derek started. "Does it really matter why Ehrlich is reconsidering?"

"Yes. It matters to me and I'm not doing it. That's what I came to tell you. I have to go pick up my girls. I'll stop by later so you can read me the riot act for whatever I missed last night."

As Jed walked away, Larry turned his eyes back to his boss. "If he doesn't want it, he doesn't want it. He knows what's at stake here."

"If it was up to Jed Bartlet, we would have never won the primary."

"Hey, do you notice that Jed tends to listen to me more than you? I think it's because I'm not in his face all the time. I tell him what I think, but ultimately, I leave it up to him. He's the one who's going to have to live with a win or a loss for the rest of his life."

"Are you telling me to back off?"

"It might not be the worst thing in the world if you and Jed found a way to work together. That's all I'm saying."

From the communications office, Christine's voice bellowed through the hall. "GUYS! GET IN HERE NOW!"

Before Derek and Larry rounded the corner, they could hear the television set blaring. Phones weren't ringing, staffers weren't talking. It was an eerie silence with only Elliot Roush's voice echoing in the background.

"It's disgusting what our doctors get away with. They're the people we turn to when we're at our most vulnerable, the people we trust to heal us, to protect us from disease. They're the ones whom we trust to care for our elderly parents and our newborn babies, the ones we trust with our most precious gift - our health. Most of them are never held accountable for betraying that responsibility. It's wrong. That's why I'm proposing this law to my colleagues in the state legislature and should I be elected this district's representative to the U.S. Congress, I will propose a similar measure there."

"What's going on?" a bewildered Larry asked Christine.

"Shhh! Channel 7 has a shot of Abbey at the airport. They aired it in the teaser for this thing."

"Representative Roush," reporter Lydia Gyles began. "To some people, this may seem like a cheap shot at your opponent whose wife is a doctor here in New Hampshire. What do you have to say to those people?"

"I'm aware that Dr. Bartlet is a thoracic surgeon and I'm also aware that she's currently fighting a malpractice suit - her second malpractice suit in the course of her short career, unfortunately - but I'm not doing this for political gain and anyone who knows me knows that. I've always been a patient advocate. It's what I practice in law, it's what I believe in. I'm doing this because doctors across the country get away with gross incompetence in record numbers because patients are left penniless after exhaustive legal fees thanks to malpractice insurance companies who keep these things in the courts for years. It's not fair to the patients who've been injured by their doctor or to the people who've lost loved ones thanks to a doctor's negligence. These people should have a layer of protection, comparable to or better than all the protection we afford doctors."

"I don't get it," Derek said. "What's he proposing?"

"Three strikes and you're out," Christine replied. "It's a new spin he came up with on a law that was passed in Florida last year. Any doctor with three malpractice suits will lose his medical license in this state."

"And Abbey already has two?"

"That's right."

Christine's assistant, Gemma, moved closer to the crowd gathering in front of the television. "He can't seriously believe that no one will think this is politically motivated. He's an idiot."

"No, he's not," Derek argued. "It doesn't matter why he did it. It doesn't even matter that his proposal is full of loose ends and loop holes because he won't have time to push it forward before election day. He has something new to say and that will force every media outlet in town to shove a mic in his face. Everyone will forget the mudslinging he just started, but they'll remember the message."

"That's right," Christine continued. "And while we beg the D-triple-C for money, Elliot Roush will have all the free press he wants. And every time he gets it, he'll point to Abbey as the poster child for wayward docs."

When it was over, Larry turned off the television and scanned the somber faces of his fellow staffers. "So who's the poor soul who's gonna tell Jed?"

TBC


	11. Chapter 11

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 11

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: After Jed found out that Abbey asked Ron Ehrlich for an endorsement, he confronted his wife; Abbey told Jed he wasn't going to win the election unless he took a few risks; Abbey was hurt to discover Jed thought she had lost faith in him; Elliot Roush proposed new legislation in a veiled attempt to go after Abbey; Zoey's teacher warns Jed and Abbey that Zoey's aggressiveness and behavior problems may be the result of developmental delays due to her premature birth (Chapter 4)

Summary: Jed and Abbey make up; Zoey annoys her sisters; sibling rivalry goes too far

- - -

* * *

After he left his campaign headquarters, Jed drove into Boston to pick up the girls. The hour-long drive gave him time to think about the fight he had with Abbey. His tone had been harsh and his accusations harsher. After all, she was just trying to help him. If only she had done it some other way, he thought. If only she hadn't included Ron Ehrlich.

It was an unusual hostility Jed felt for Ron. He freely admitted that. After 20 years of marriage, there was no reason to be jealous of Abbey's ex-boyfriends and, ordinarily, he wasn't. But Ron was different. He was the one he feared would win Abbey's heart during their courtship. It surprised even him that although he was secure in his wife's love for him now, Ron Ehrlich could still unearth the bitter feelings he did 20 years earlier.

For Ron to learn how much Jed was struggling in his campaign fueled that bitterness. He tried to explain that to Abbey, but his feelings were lost in a war of words. And she fought back. Hurling point after point at him, Abbey tried to force him to see that he needed Ron's endorsement. He outwardly rejected those points, but internally, he acknowledged that she was right - at least partly.

Jed wasn't going to beg Ron for an endorsement after he already turned Derek down, but if he wanted to win the election, he did have to step up his game. He just hadn't figured out how to do that without compromising the morals and ethics he held close to his heart.

When he returned home with the girls, Jed headed to the kitchen to start an early dinner. He assembled the pots and pans he needed to make a delicious lemon roast chicken in white wine sauce.

"DAD!"

Elizabeth's scream jolted him. He looked towards the kitchen entrance and returned her bellow. "What?"

"Dad!" Liz repeated as she bounded down the steps and practically sprinted into the kitchen. "Will you do something about Zoey? She took my diary and when I tried to get it away from her, she screamed bloody murder and ran."

"Why did she take your diary?"

"She's pretend reading it. She opens it up to a random page, then sits on the bed and pretends she's reading."

"Why?"

"To bug me."

Jed had a different theory. "Nah. She's bored. She's just trying to get your attention so you'll play with her. You and Ellie did the same thing at that age."

"Dad, it's my DIARY!"

"She can't read, Lizzie."

"Yeah, but still. It's creeping me out. She doesn't respect my property. And anyway, how do we know for sure she can't read? Ellie was reading before she turned five. Maybe Zoey is too, but she's just pretending she can't."

"Because she's just that sneaky?"

"She IS sneaky, Dad," Liz replied with more than a hint of seriousness to her voice. "Last week, when Mom told her she wasn't allowed to eat frosting right out of the can, Zoey waited until Mom went into the study, then she climbed on a chair and stepped onto her booster seat to get to the frosting. She grabbed a spoon, went into the family room, hid behind the sofa, and ate it all. She had a stomach ache all night."

"Why didn't we know about this?"

"She thought Mom would be upset with her, so Ellie and I took care of her instead."

"You guys should have told us if she was sick. I don't want you keeping secrets like that from your mother and me."

"We didn't want to get her in trouble."

"Then why are you telling me now?"

"Because NOW she's reading my diary and I don't like it. Will you do something?"

"I'll be up in a minute."

"I can chase her for it, but I don't wanna get blamed when she falls and gets hurt. It's kinda slippery up there."

"Leave her alone! I'll be up in a minute." Jed approached her curiously. "And why is it slippery up there?"

"Ellie spilled a cup of apple juice and left it there while she worked on her project, so when she tried to clean it up later, it was all dry and sticky."

"She shouldn't have left it."

"Yeah, well, she thought she could get rid of the stickiness with soap and water, but I guess she used too much soap because there were suds everywhere, so she dumped a huge bucket of water over it."

"Oh God," Jed sighed as he rolled his eyes.

"Then Zoey started splashing around in the puddle so now Ellie's skating up and down the hall on a couple of old sweaters to dry it."

"SWEATERS? Why is she using sweaters?"

"Because she already used up all the toilet paper and she figured you guys would get mad if she used the clean towels. Besides, they're old sweaters. She doesn't wear them anymore."

"Still."

"She tried to use her sheets, but she just got tangled up in them."

"Tell her to put away her sweaters! I'll be up in a minute."

"She'll take care of it, Dad, don't worry. If she doesn't, we'll use baby powder and a blowdryer like we did last time."

"What the hell goes on upstairs?"

Liz shrugged as she turned from him and left the kitchen. Jed wiped his hands on a dish towel and began to follow her out when he heard the front door open.

"Hi," Abbey said, walking through the foyer.

"Hi. I picked up the girls."

"I know. I called Mom. She said you were coming over, so I went to my office to catch up on some paperwork."

"I figured."

"I also called Ron. I told him that if he believes in you and what you stand for, then he should give his recommendation to his colleagues at the SBA. If not, then an endorsement would be unethical and dishonest and I didn't want him doing it just because I asked him to."

"I appreciate you calling him, Abbey, but..."

"I didn't think about how it would look to other people. I didn't even think about how it would look to you. 'Sneaking around,' Jed?" That accusation hurt her because it implied something dirty.

"I'm sorry about that. It just came out in the heat of the moment. It wasn't fair. I was out of line."

"You had a right to be angry. I should have told you. I wasn't trying to undermine you and I certainly didn't do it because I lost faith in you. I was just trying to help, that's all, and I was afraid if you knew, you would object."

"I would have."

"I never lost faith in you, Jed. You have the drive, the intelligence, the charisma, and the charm to make people fall in love with you and once they do, they'll know that you're the guy to get the job done. I've always believed that." She took a few steps towards him. "I've always believed in you and I believe in you now."

"I know," Jed replied. "I wasn't thinking clearly this morning. I was still upset about the Leo thing. I was tired and cranky. Ron's message threw me off and I guess I took it harder than either of us expected. I can't explain why."

"You don't have to. He's still a sore spot between us."

"I don't want him to be, Abbey. I know it's juvenile. I know that and for some reason, I can't rope in my feelings about him. Despite what I said, I never really doubted your loyalty to me. It wasn't about that."

"What was it?"

"I don't know, jealousy? It's ridiculous. Don't ask me to explain because I can't. I just know how I felt and I regret that I didn't take a deep breath and a long walk before I talked to you about it. I overreacted."

"Maybe just a little bit," Abbey agreed, drawing a soft chuckle from her husband. She pulled a single red rose from behind her back. "But I let it come between us because I didn't tell you. That was my mistake. I'm sorry."

Jed extended his arm to take the rose and as he did, he gripped Abbey's hand and pulled her into a kiss, followed by a tight embrace. "I'm sorry too."

"DAD!" Elizabeth's call sounded angrier than before.

"What's going on?" Abbey asked.

"Zoey took her diary. I promised I'd come up and deal with it."

"Her diary? Zoey can't even read."

"It's pretend reading or something. Liz and Ellie are doing their own thing today and Zoey's just trying to get some attention and, in the process, she's pissing them off."

"DAD!" Liz started down the stairs faster when she saw Abbey. "Mom, thank god! You HAVE to do something about Zoey. She went into my room and tried on my make-up. There's powder everywhere and she broke my tube of lipstick!"

"Zoey, get down here!" Abbey yelled.

The four-year-old wobbled down the steps, her entire face colored with blush while a ring of pink lipstick outlined her mouth. "I didn't do it."

"You didn't go into Lizzie's room and use her make-up?" Zoey shook her head as Abbey kneeled down to her level. "You know what's gonna happen if you lie?"

"What?"

"You're gonna spend the rest of the day in your room."

"I am?" Abbey nodded. Zoey pondered the consequences, then looked up at Liz and said, "I'm sorry, Lizzie."

"You have to help me clean up the powder," Liz told her as she handed her a roll of paper towels she had just grabbed from the kitchen counter.

"Okay." Reluctantly, Zoey took the paper towels and followed her big sister upstairs.

"Hey, did you know our daughters have created their own little world upstairs?" Jed asked Abbey. "Liz told me Zoey snuck into the pantry the other night and ate all the frosting after you told her she couldn't have any. Her sisters didn't want to get her in trouble, so they nursed her stomach ache all evening."

"You're kidding."

"Last I heard today, Ellie was skating around on a couple of sweaters..."

"Sweaters?"

"She made a mess in the hall and she's trying to clean it up."

"Why is she using her sweaters to clean it up?"

"She thought we'd be pissed if she used bath towels."

Abbey shook her head. "I better get up there."

"I have no doubt you and I would have never known about this had it not been for the for the great diary caper. God only knows what else happens that we never hear about."

"I prefer to live behind a wall of ignorance."

"You do not. We could install a spy cam, you know."

"We're not going to spy on the girls."

"Where's your sense of fun?" he teased.

She slipped out of her jacket. "I'm going upstairs."

"It's pretty slick up there." He smiled at her when she stopped midway and turned to look at him. "I'm starting dinner - lemon roast chicken in white wine sauce."

"A little pasta on the side?" The pasta was Abbey's favorite.

"You bet!"

"Mmm, I can't wait."

Just when Jed began to tease her by rattling off a couple of other side dishes he planned to make, they heard a gut-wrenching scream echo from the top of the stairs. Already halfway up, Abbey led the way as she and Jed raced towards their daughters. When they reached the top, they found Ellie stretched over, her hand holding her ankle. She was weeping as Lizzie tried to help her.

"It hurts," the ten-year-old squeaked amid a flood of tears.

"What happened?" Abbey sat down beside her to examine her leg.

"Zoey had a couple of paper towels in her hand to help me clean off my dresser" Liz started. "But then Ellie took them from her to dry the rest of the floor, so Zoey pushed her and Ellie fell."

"Why did you push her?" Jed scolded his youngest daughter.

"She took my paper towels."

"I don't care what she did! You know better than that."

Her lips curling, Zoey wrinkled her forehead. She never meant to hurt Ellie. As soon as she heard Ellie scream, confusion clouded her thoughts and she stood there, silent - and seemingly defiant.

"All right, Zoey, go wait for us in your room," Abbey said. "Liz, can you get me an ice pack and a bandage please?"

"Do you want your medical bag?"

"No. She just twisted it. It might be sprained. We're going to put some ice on it and keep it bandaged and elevated. It'll be good as new in no time. Jed, will you help me move her to her bedroom?"

With her fingertips, Abbey tenderly wiped Ellie's tears away, then moved so Jed could lift her up in his arms and carry her to her bed. He watched Abbey sit on the edge of the mattress, at their daughter's side as she gently raised her leg to stuff some pillows under her ankle. It never surprised him how quickly she could fall into doctor mode, but what frequently amazed him is how well she integrated her role as mother and doctor.

"Here you go!" Running into the room, Liz handed Abbey a bandage and an ice pack.

"Thanks, Lizzie. Have a seat. I want to talk to you both - about Zoey."

Jed knew what she had to say and he couldn't bear to hear it. He refused to believe the reason for Zoey's aggressiveness was anything more than normal sibling rivalry. In his mind, he had already discounted the warning he received from Zoey's teacher. The possibility that his daughter was suffering from developmental delays that sparked such behavior was hogwash to him. She was acting like any other kid.

As he stepped out of the room, Abbey followed him. "Jed?"

"I'm not ready to have this conversation, Abbey."

"Then you need to do something to get yourself ready. We have to deal with this."

"Deal with what? She didn't mean to do it. And Ellie wouldn't have slipped if the floor hadn't already been coated with soap and water."

"Are you blaming Ellie?"

"Of course not. I'm saying that Ellie is five years older and stronger. There were other factors that caused her to get hurt."

"Does that excuse the fact that Zoey pushed her, the same way her teacher said she pushes her classmates when she doesn't get her way? It was easy to dismiss it before, but now we've seen it with our own eyes and regardless of the reason she's acting this way or whether or not it was entirely her fault that Ellie sprained her ankle, making excuses is a terrible message to send to all three of the girls."

"Then do exactly what we would do if Ellie or Liz had done this. Treat Zoey the same."

"It's not Ellie or Liz. It's Zoey. And I need to know if there's an underlying problem here."

"There isn't."

"I made an appointment with a child psychologist the other day...a woman at the hospital."

"She's going to tell you exactly what I just did."

"Good, I hope she does." He looked at her quizzically. "Don't you think I want it to be true? I want everything you want for her. But I'm not going to live in denial and shut out the possibility that something's wrong. I can't do that."

"That's what you think I'm doing."

"I carried her through pregnancy, Jed. It's because my negligence that she didn't make it full term. We almost lost her."

His hands on her shoulders, he said, "That's not your fault. You know that."

"If there's a problem, I want to find it. I want to fix it so that she can lead a normal life." Abbey stared straight into his eyes, all her pain and guilt now visible. "I owe her that."

Before Jed could say another word, the phone rang. He crossed the hall to answer it while Abbey waited a few feet away, still outside Ellie's room.

"Hello?"

"Jed, where the hell have you been?" There was an urgency to Derek's voice that was unfamiliar to Jed. "We've left you a dozen messages!"

"I haven't checked my messages. What's up?"

"We need you down here!"

"You're going to have to give me a few minutes. What's going on?"

"Get to a TV. Channel seven. NOW!"

"Hang on." He set down the receiver and turned to Abbey. "He wants me to turn on the TV."

"What's..." Abbey started.

"I don't know."

Jed left, then, and headed to the master bedroom. He turned on the television and stood in front of it with his arms folded over his chest. Within seconds, his arms fell to his sides and his jaw dropped open as he heard Elliot Roush announce his new proposal over video of Abbey walking through the terminal of Manchester Airport.

His eyes glued to the set, he screamed for his wife. "ABBEY!"

TBC


	12. Chapter 12

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 12

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Elliot Roush announced the proposal of a new law that would keep Abbey's name in the press; Ellie twisted her ankle after Zoey pushed her during a squabble; Abbey told Jed if he wanted to win the election, he had to take more of a stand (Chapter 10); Abbey was served with malpractice papers in the Bill Niederlander case (Chapter 1)

Summary: Jed sees red; Abbey gets Zoey to smooth things over with Ellie; Jed defends Abbey

* * *

"Someone give me one damn good reason I shouldn't march over to Roush's office, string him up by his ears, and make a human piñata out of him!"

All eyes turned towards Jed's booming voice.

Buzzing around campaign headquarters, his staff had been urgently spitting out ideas to form a strategy against Elliot Roush's proposal. Once Derek finally got a hold of Jed and rushed him towards a television so he could hear it for himself, he and Abbey watched the replay of Roush's attack - an attack that, to them, came out of the blue.

No one predicted Roush would announce a law that would yank the license of a physician after three malpractice suits as a way to tout his allegiance to patients and simultaneously bring attention to Abbey's seemingly imperfect record as a surgeon. It would guarantee him press time free of charge and would keep his name at the forefront of election coverage while sullying Abbey's reputation and wreaking havoc on Jed's campaign agenda in the final weeks leading up to the election.

Now, Jed stood at the head of his war room, scanning the faces of his staffers and wondering why they hadn't prepared for this.

"Anyone?" He approached an empty seat at the large wooden table. "Some people tend to have rules they subscribe to, personal rules that they use to guide them through life. One of mine is that I protect my wife at all costs, especially when a manipulative slimeball aims his gun directly at her and then waits for others to pull the trigger. So someone give me a reason - any reason - I shouldn't go over there and beat the crap out of Roush."

"It won't play well in the press?" Christine offered.

"He made it personal." There was a different quality to Jed's tone. It wasn't just anger coming out. It was rage. Cold, empty rage.

"We won't let him win."

Just as Jed predicted, his staff had stripped the walls of next week's schedule, scrapped the cookie-cutter fundraising events that would take their candidate out of town, and huddled behind the doors of the war room to come up with a way to respond.

"We've already started strategizing," Larry informed him.

"Good," Jed replied. "First thing's first. Roush doesn't have the facts. Abbey was a junior resident at the time of the first malpractice suit. She was NOT in charge of that surgery. The suit was made against the attending physician. Abbey was named, as was every other doctor in the operating room. All she did was hold the retractor during that procedure and it's important to note, that case was dismissed as a nuisance suit before it went to trial. Neither she, nor her attending, were found guilty of malpractice."

"Okay, then, we'll clear that up ASAP. If only the Niederlander case was as simple."

"Jed, where is Abbey?" Christine asked. "It would be helpful if she was here."

"I think we're fine with just Jed," Derek interjected. "We're hammering out a strategy to get us through game day. I don't want us talking over each other. The less people here tonight, the better."

Jed eyed his campaign director. "You have a plan?"

"We're getting there."

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the house, Abbey treated Ellie's ankle and made certain her middle daughter was as comfortable as she could be, then made her way to Zoey's room. She stood in the doorway at first, staring silently at the four-year-old's tiny body curled up in a ball on her bed. Her broken sobs lured Abbey inside.

"Zoey?" She sat down beside her. "You wanna talk about what happened?"

"I didn't mean to push her!" Zoey's reply was muffled since her face was crushed against her pillow, but her indignation was unmistakable.

"Well, I think you did mean to push her. You just didn't mean for her to get hurt."

"I DIDN'T MEAN TO PUSH HER!" Zoey insisted, louder this time as she cried even harder and buried her head under her arms.

Abbey eased herself fully onto the mattress so she could lie against the pillows while rubbing soothing strokes up and down Zoey's back. "I'm not calling you a liar."

"I didn't mean it," Zoey said once again.

"You know, when your Aunt Kate and I were growing up, she had this habit of scratching people. She must have been about two and this was her way of communicating frustration or anger. So, one day, she scratched me because I took her coloring book away from her. I scratched her back, except I scratched her much harder than I meant to and she started bleeding. She screamed so loud and then I saw the blood. I got really scared, the way you did when Ellie fell down."

Zoey stuck her head out of her little cocoon and asked, "Did you get in trouble?"

"Mmm hmm. And I ran to my room and I cried, just like you. But I realized one of the reasons I was crying was because she was hurt and I hurt her and no one listened to me when I said I didn't mean to. See, I meant to scratch her, but I never wanted to hurt her. I was just mad at her and I didn't understand that doing what I did would cause her pain until after I did it. By then, it was too late to take it back." Abbey sat up and stated firmly, "You didn't mean to hurt Ellie."

"I didn't."

"Of course you didn't. You pushed her because she made you mad, but you didn't want her to fall down." Zoey shook her head. "But that's why we don't push people, Zoey. That's how people get hurt. We've talked about that before, remember?"

"Yes." Zoey nodded this time. "I didn't want her to get hurt."

"I think she'd like to hear that." Abbey stood and held out a hand to her baby girl. "What do you say we go talk to her?"

Zoey wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, then climbed off her bed.

* * *

"The Florida law emphasizes any physician who has had three malpractice JUDGMENTS against him or her may lose his or her license. It's judgments, not malpractice suits. That's an important distinction." Carol, who was part of the research team, handed everyone a packet of information documenting the details of the Florida initiative that inspired Roush's proposal.

Derek threw the stack of papers across the table. "Roush changed it."

"Of course he did," Jed said, not the least bit surprised. "Abbey doesn't have any judgments against her - the first case was dismissed as a nuisance suit and this case hasn't gone to trial - so in order to hit her, Roush had no choice but to change it, which only proves what we knew all along. His target, from the beginning, was Abbey."

"She's your weakness, Jed. He knew that and he took advantage of it. We have to fight it."

"The proposal or Roush?" Christine asked.

"Both. We have to make it clear that Roush doesn't give a damn about medical reform or patient safety. The only reason he's doing this is to attack Abbey."

"If we do that, if we take the defensive, it'll look we're the ones who made it personal."

"If we don't, Roush will have a field day with the press and it'll be Abbey who will feel the brunt of it."

"What if Jed backs up Roush?" Larry questioned.

"Are you kidding?" Jed was outraged by the notion.

"No, hear me out. You don't have to say a word about doctors, but if you go out there and advocate patient safety as well, it takes away Roush's power."

"And gives him a straight-out victory before Election Day!" Derek scorned. "That's a lousy idea, Larry. Our guy will have jumped on a train Roush is driving. We have to think of something else."

"He could refuse to get involved, ignore Roush, ignore the press, say 'no comment' if they bash Abbey." That bold suggestion came from a relatively new staffer named Greg. He was young and he hadn't been around the campaign very long. He had yet to understand the Bartlet marriage.

After a moment of silence from the stunned staffers, Christine said, "I'd like to start a pool on how long it'll take for that to blow up in our faces."

"No, listen. He wouldn't condemn her, of course, but he could easily avoid defending her. If he doesn't defend her, then her malpractice suit and this campaign become two separate issues. That gives Roush less ammunition to go after Abbey and even if he continues on this track, at least it takes Jed out of the line of fire."

"Jed isn't going to stand back and say nothing while the other guys throw out accusations that Abbey is an incompetent physician. Besides, the media will ambush him at Abbey's malpractice hearing and regardless of what he says there, his presence will provoke Roush."

"Then he'll miss the hearing."

"Geez, Greg, would you do me a favor and let me leave the room before you suggest something like that in front of Jed."

"Christine's right," Derek agreed. "He won't do it, he won't miss the hearing."

"Even for the good of the campaign?"

"Have you met Jed Bartlet?"

Jed rose from his chair. "As much fun as it is listening to you all talk about me as if I'm not here, I feel the need to be included in this conversation." He approached Greg. "What's your name?"

"Greg, sir."

"Greg, welcome aboard. Let me see if I have this straight. You want me to pretend I am oblivious to Roush's attack against Abbey?"

"No. I want you to distance yourself from your wife's malpractice suit. Don't comment on it, don't defend her, and don't show up to her hearing."

"You want me to distance myself from my wife?"

"Not exactly. Abbey could still make appearances with you and on your behalf. She's one of your surrogates, right? That doesn't have to change. You'd just be distancing yourself from her latest troubles."

"You don't think that's the same thing?"

"No, I don't. Your wife could hurt your chances."

"And you think the way to win votes is to hang her out to dry?"

"That's not what I'm suggesting, not at all. I'm being practical. You're going to get asked about Roush's proposal and as of right now, we don't have a suitable response. Until we do, the only way around it is to avoid it altogether."

"I could give you a dozen political reasons why that won't work, not to mention two dozen personal ones."

"It's not personal. You're taking it the wrong way."

"No, I'm not. You seem like an intelligent young man. I like that you had the courage to voice your opinion and fight for it despite Derek and Christine's objections. But I agree with them. Your idea isn't practical. You know why?"

"Why?"

"Derek, Larry, and Christine have taught me one of the most important rules of political campaigning is to know your candidate. Once you get to know me, you'll know that the first time some reporter implies that Abbey is anything less than a world-class doctor, even God, Himself, won't be able to shut me up."

"Dr. Bartlet, I do know a lot about you. I did my research. I think it's cute that you treat your wife like your equal, but you have to be realistic. You're running for office, she's not."

Jed had to admit he was impressed by Greg's chutzpah, though he was less charmed by his attitude. "I'm aware of that."

"So I'm just thinking..."

Jed cut him off then. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and swaggered across the room to address his entire staff. "Let's get something straight, guys. My wife spent four years in medical school, seven years in surgical residency, and one year in a thoracic surgery fellowship."

It was important to Jed that they understood why Abbey deserved their respect. He wanted them to know how hard she worked to accomplish the goal that Roush's proposal now threatened.

"Medical school wasn't just something she did in her spare time," he continued. "For four long years, it consumed her. She spent all-nighters at the library during years one and two. The only reason she ever took a break and came home at 6 a.m. was so she could have breakfast with me and Lizzie. In her third year, she began clinical rotations. In between all the scut work she did at the hospital and all the studying for the shelf exams after each rotation, she stood up to an arrogant, chauvinistic resident who believed that a woman's place was at home, barefoot and pregnant. She proved herself to him and to everyone around him and to this day, he's still trying to make her life a living hell because of it."

Kyle Nelson wasn't a phantom to most of the staff. His name had already come up once during the campaign.

"She finally graduated at the top of her class at Harvard at a time when women were laughed out of medicine," he said. "She worked 36-hour shifts and 100-hour work weeks after graduation. On five separate occasions during her internship year, she nearly crashed her car on her way home out of sheer exhaustion. Incidentally, does anyone know why residents are called residents?"

Everyone stared at him blankly until he answered his own question.

"It's because once upon a time, they used to live at the hospital. Actually live there. They worked so many hours that there was no point in sending them home when they were expected to be there around the clock anyway. The first year of residency - the internship - was especially brutal, so the interns just collapsed on the cots in the call room in between emergencies. They had their bags there. They lived out of suitcases. That was their home for the duration of their training. Somewhere along the way, the living arrangements changed, but the hours did not. They still put in an obscene work-week. They're expected to make life and death decisions after 30 hours of constant running around from one patient to the next with no sleep whatsoever. Abbey clawed...literally, clawed...her way out of residency. And in the end, she made it."

His eyes were beaming with pride at that statement.

"She earned those initials after her name. She earned the office and the name plates she got after graduating fellowship and becoming a fully licensed thoracic surgeon. She earned the long white coat she wears today and anyone who thinks that I won't move heaven and earth to shout it from the rooftops is out of their minds. I won't stand by and watch while a bastard like Roush tries to undermine the career she worked so hard to build. Now I don't know how we're going to get through this, but Abbey and I are going to do it together. Missing her malpractice hearing...that isn't even a possibility."

The idea was laughable really. Jed was there to share her excitement before her first day of medical school orientation. He was there, alongside her parents, to cheer her on during the traditional white coat ceremony for students before the start of classes. He was there to calm her nerves before her first Gross Anatomy practical, there to help her study for Step One of the United States Medical Licensing Exam during third-year rotations, and for Step Two as a newly minted fourth-year. He was there for residency interviews, residency match day and graduation, and finally for Step Three of the USMLE.

He anxiously bit his nails to the skin when Abbey took her board certification exams, he stayed up to keep her company all those sleepless nights she spent agonizing over what more she could do for patients she knew weren't going to make it until morning, and he held her in their bed all night long the night she lost Bill Niederlander on the operating table.

Asking him to not stand beside her while she defended herself in court was, to Jed, like asking him to betray her in the worst way possible. With his resolve clearer than ever, he looked every staffer in the eye.

"If anyone thinks I'm making a mistake, fine, maybe I am. You guys are the professionals. But there are some things not up for debate. Keeping quiet in this type of situation is as good as agreeing with Roush and I'll be damned if I'm going to do that. I'd rather lose this election than give the impression, however superficial, that I don't support my wife one-hundred percent. If anyone can't respect that and would like to leave before we get our asses kicked on the other side of Election Day, the door's wide open. Otherwise, let's come up with something plausible, shall we?"

Not a single person hesitated. Instead, they all reclaimed their seats at the table, refreshed and ready for more.

"Okay," Larry replied.

"Let's get to work," Christine added.

While heading back to his chair, Jed had one more thing to add. "And, for future reference..." he gestured to his new staffer.

"Greg," the man reminded him.

"Sorry, I'm not too good with names. Anyway, Greg, for future reference, Abbey's not my equal. She's better than I am."

* * *

"A is for Angels that dance around my head, B is for Babies snuggled warm in their bed, C is for Clouds that fly high above, D is for Daddy, a person I love."

Spying through a crack in Zoey's bedroom door, Jed smiled at his youngest daughter kneeling at the side of her bed and reciting the alphabet prayer Abbey had taught her.

One thing he left out when talking to his staff about all the sacrifices Abbey made for her career was that she never neglected her role as his wife and the mother of his children. She wasn't perfect by any means. It annoyed him when she had to stay late because of an emergency operation or when she had to spend the night at hospital when she was on-call during residency. She missed things now and then, and from time to time, out of frustration, he reminded her of that. But he always felt guilty afterwards because he knew, deep down, that though she gave one-hundred percent to her job, somehow, she managed to give one-hundred and fifty to her family.

"E is for Ellie my sister and friend, F is for Flowers I use to play pretend, G is for God who made us all, H is for Heaven where angels call, I is for Ice that cools my tongue, J is for Jesus who is God's son, K is for Kiss you give after a fight, L is for Lizzie, keep her safe tonight."

Zoey broke her train of thought when she caught a glimpse of her father out in the hall. Following her daughter's stare, Abbey opened the door.

"Daddy!"

"Jed, what are you doing?"

As he walked in, he kept his eyes glued to Zoey. "M is for Mommy..."

"M is for Mommy who takes care of me," Zoey continued. "N is for Nature and all the pretty leaves."

With his encouragement, Zoey finished her prayers and afterwards, Jed and Abbey helped her into bed, tucking her in before she could use her big green eyes to sweet-talk them into reading her another bedtime story. Each gave her a kiss, then Jed turned off her lamp and adjusted the glow of the night light on their way out.

Abbey closed the door behind them as they left the room. "She apologized to Ellie. She's not entirely out of trouble, but at least she apologized."

"I know," Jed replied. "I already checked on Ellie. Her ankle's feeling better."

"Did you check on Liz too? She's been on the phone all night."

"Yeah. She's still talking away. She wants her own line for Christmas, by the way."

"Forget it." Abbey sighed as they rounded the corner towards the master bedroom. "How'd it go tonight?"

"We have a strategy. A counter proposal, media blitz. But before I tell you about it...Abbey, are you okay with this? I mean, really okay?"

"What choice do I have?"

"You have a choice. Tell me not to do it. Tell me to drop out of the race right here, right now, and I will."

"I can't do that."

"Yes, you can. The ball is completely and totally in your court. No resentment, not I told you so's, nothing. I just want to do whatever I can to make this easier for you."

She took his hands then. Speaking softly, she looked into his tortured baby blues and said, "Honey, why are you feeling guilty? There's no reason for you to feel responsible for this. Elliot Roush is a miserable human being who's trying to derail you by going after me. There's nothing you could have done to stop what's happening."

Abbey was Jed's Achilles heel and Roush counted on that. But he wouldn't win this time. His orchestrated attempt to weaken Jed's campaign by targeting the person he loved more than life itself only made Jed stronger. It didn't bring him to his knees, it revived him. He left the house that afternoon full of fire and that night, as he spoke to Abbey, she saw the flames ignited within him.

"He won't get away with it."

"Of course he won't. That's why you can't drop out of the race, Jed. That's true now more than ever because if you do, then you'll be telling every politician in America that the way to get rid of an opponent is to go after his family."

"I know."

"It's a dangerous precedent to set."

"I know."

"We'll get through this and one day, we'll look back and laugh at the idiot named Elliot Roush." She slipped her arm around his waist and led him into their room. "You're gonna win."

"I'm gonna do more than that, Abbey. I'm gonna destroy him."

TBC


	13. Chapter 13

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 13

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Abbey was served with malpractice papers (Chapter 1); Abbey broke the news to Bill Niederlander's widow, Arlene, that her husband had died (Chapter 8 of The Nobel Laureate)

Summary: With Jed's support, Abbey faces her malpractice hearing head-on

* * *

Just as the sun streaked the New Hampshire sky at dawn, Abbey hit the pavement in a black tank top and a pair of black sweatpants that outlined her petite figure with red piping. She tied a sweatshirt around her waist, but she didn't need it on this warm autumn day.

An early morning jog was something she did frequently. What she wasn't used to, though, was having Jed nipping at her heels. He usually slept in during her morning routine, and on those rare occasions that he woke up first, it wasn't so he could exercise.

"Aren't we home yet?" he grunted when they reached the foot of a small hill on the opposite side of the pond.

"Yes, Jed, we're home. The trees and the grass and the water you see in front of you is nothing but an elaborate mirage I planted to fool you."

He glanced at her scornfully, narrowing his eyes. "Sarcasm doesn't become you." He took a breath. "And neither does competition."

"I'm not feeling competitive." Abbey gave him a triumphant crinkle of her brow in response. "I think it's already been established that I'm the superior athlete, despite your hollow hiking victory at Acadia last month."

"Ah ha! So that's what's got you running like a maniac," Jed concluded, trying desperately to keep up and still falling just a step behind her. "See, I knew you were up to something. This is not a pretty side of you, Abigail."

"The exercise will do you good, Jethro."

"Besides, one jog doesn't prove anything. Give me two rounds on the basketball court and I'll have you singing a different tune."

"If you make it to the basketball court, that is."

"Why'd you invite me to come along if you're just going to make fun of me?"

"I'm fickle? Or maybe it's just that I enjoy making fun of you."

The truth was, she loved him like this. He was handsome in his work clothes, out on the campaign trail as a professional politician, but in his Notre Dame sweatshirt and matching green and gray sweatpants, with his hair damp and hanging down over his face, he still looked exactly like the man she fell in love with all those years ago - young, innocent, and as sexy as ever. Today, more than ever, she wanted to recapture him in this light.

"Leave it to you to ruin a perfectly lovely jog by snarking me."

"You don't get to make up words," Abbey barked. "And perfectly lovely jog? Two seconds ago you couldn't wait for it to be over."

"That's just because I'm eager to start the day. In case you're unaware, I am running for Congress. I have places to go, people to see. I'm a busy person."

"Yes, and the rest of us just float through life lazily."

"Someone's awfully snippy today." He caught up to her. Running side-by-side, he grabbed her arm without stopping. "Abbey, no kidding, are you all right?"

"I was teasing you."

"Really?"

"Yeah, really. Early morning is about the only time you're still sleepy enough that I can tease you without retribution."

"Coward," he sputtered. "Seriously, about the other thing..."

"The malpractice hearing. You can say it out loud, Jed. Avoiding it doesn't make it any less real. To answer your question, yes, I'm all right. I'm going to go in there, tell them what happened, and wait for the judge's decision."

"You sound more confident than you did a few weeks ago."

"A lot has happened in the past few weeks." Her demeanor changed suddenly and from her strong, capable expression rose a more vulnerable look. "Will you be there?"

"You really think I'd miss it?"

"No."

"Then why do you ask such silly questions?"

"It's the only way to get my real questions answered."

"What's your real question?"

She paused for a beat, then asked, "Will Elliot Roush's people be there?"

"I don't know," Jed replied. "If I could keep them out, I swear..."

"I know, but you can't...and neither can I." She looked over at him once more. "If it doesn't go my way, what does that do to your campaign?"

"Don't."

"I can't help it."

"Yes, you can and you will. The campaign doesn't matter today. This is about you and you alone. You're going to put politics out of your mind and you're going to concentrate on what's really important."

He didn't care about the political ramifications. His top priority was Abbey

"You're so bossy." She smirked at him.

They ran in silence for the next few minutes until Jed, too uncomfortable leaving the conversation where it was, changed the subject.

"Say, Zoey told me the way you got her to apologize to Ellie for pushing her was to tell her the story about you and Kate and the 'scratching' incident."

"I did."

"At Acadia, when we fished Mallory out of the water, you told her a story about the time you got caught up in those same waves and had to be rescued by lifeguards."

"I did that too."

"Why is it whenever one of the girls has a problem, you have a story like that to share? And more importantly, how come I never hear about these stories until something happens?"

"Most of the time, I just make them up."

"You what?"

"I make them up. I take whatever it is they've done, change a few things, and say I did it at their age. It's not that hard."

"Oh, you are terrible, scolding them if they dare to lie to you, all the while entertaining them with wild, made-up tales from your youth. What else don't they know about you? How many phony anecdotes have you shared with them over the years?"

"Too many to get into now." She saw him shaking his head. Taking pleasure in needling him, she added, "And it's not just them."

"You lie to me too?"

"Only when it's for your own good...or when I feel like it."

"You're such a schemer. And a liar too. I should tell the girls."

"Only if you want to sleep on the couch for the next week! And before you peg me Mommie Dearest, let it be said that it makes them feel better to know they're not the only kids in the world who do foolish things. We've all been there."

"Yeah, well, I'm not so sure about that. I never did half the things our daughters do."

"Yeah, but you were a boy. It's not exactly the same."

"What does that mean?"

"Boys are different. They have different ways of causing mischief."

"And they cause more of it, too."

"I don't know about that. On some level, I think parents with boys have it easier."

"You think raising three boys is easier than raising three girls?"

"In some ways, yes, I do."

He slowed down and, at the same time, he slowed her down, too, until they both stopped. "I wholeheartedly disagree and I object to your sexist attitude."

Abbey chuckled as Jed bent at the waist to catch his breath.

"It's not sexist, Pumpkin. It's reality. Boys are more independent, easy-going. Girls are sensitive and territorial. They feel left out of things, they hold grudges, and they get mad if they've been slighted in any way. And all of that is nothing compared to how they interact with other girls. If boys have a problem, they stay away from each other. With girls, it's a totally different story. Seriously, you think it's tough running a congressional campaign? Try being a middle school girl for a day."

"Now THAT'S an exaggeration."

"Not that big of one."

"Women love to praise little boys. What they leave out is all the mocking they do when those boys grow up to be men."

"Men aren't mocked. You're running the world."

"Yeah, professionally. Personally, you females have a lot of fun at our expense."

"Since when?"

"It's the unspoken rule. Say men are stupid and you're funny. Say women are stupid and you're a chauvinist pig. It's a double standard."

"You can't be serious."

"Oh, but I am. I don't know if it's always been this way or if we're just feeling the brunt of it now. We're as intelligent and charming and debonair as we've always been, but nowadays, we're also bumbling idiots. I call it the Phil Donahue syndrome."

"You watch Phil Donahue?"

"No, I don't watch Phil Donahue. I would never watch that show. His people scare me. But that's not the point."

"Then what is the point?"

"I don't have to watch it to know what's going on. It's a perception thing. To women, men only exist to be the punchline."

"No woman in her right mind believes that."

"Yeah? Then why is it people watch programs like Donahue?"

"For the same reason they slow down on the highway to see a car accident. They can't help it." Abbey untied her sweatshirt from around her waist while Jed stretched his arms.

"I don't buy that. Women nowadays are depicted in the media as smart and mysterious. Men are either intellectual nerds or idiots. Like it's unheard of to meet a smart man who also happens to be a little handsome or a handsome man who also happens to have a brain."

"You're crazy, Jed."

"And your denial of the double standard only makes me believe it more."

"So what are you in this magical world where women wield such power - the brain or the sexy, my little Nobel Laureate?"

"Screw it, I'm bringing back the sexy."

"You are the sexy." She batted her eyes at him flirtatiously when she said that. "I can't believe you're all worked up over this."

"I'm not." He stretched his neck and his back. "But it sure was great distracting you so I could catch my breath."

She swatted him with her sweatshirt. "You're a manipulative jackass, you know that?"

"I do." Jed leaned in, stole a quick kiss, and just as he pulled away, he bolted from her, sprinting towards the farm house. "Last one to the house has to cook breakfast!"

* * *

Despite his head-start, Abbey still beat Jed to the house. He blamed it on her knack for deceiving him by shrieking in pain and pretending to pull a muscle just as they passed the orchard. She credited her superior stamina and the fact that her dear sweet husband was so gullible that by the time he realized he had been fooled, she was several feet ahead of him.

While Abbey jumped into the shower, Jed made them both steaming mugs of coffee and carried them upstairs. He set the mugs on the nightstand, then stripped out of his sweats when he heard the bath water running. He snuck into the bathroom on the tips of his toes, pulled the shower curtain from behind her, and stepped into the tub without making a sound, the hint of his presence only revealed when his hand began to rub against her.

"Jesus, Jed, you scared the hell out of me!" Throwing her head back, she surrendered with soft moans as he lavished her shoulder with tender kisses. "You're just trying to get out of cooking breakfast."

"I like this much better than breakfast," he muttered in a seductive tone, comparable to the sensual sounds he had provoked from her.

He felt her body give way physically, her muscles relaxing so fast that her posture nearly crumbled when he reached to the front to cup her breasts. She responded to this by turning around, tilting her head, and closing the gap between them as she pulled him into a breathless liplock that forced him under the downpour of the shower head.

"I've been wanting to do that all morning," she said.

"You should have said so," Jed replied, beads of water falling from his hair and running down his face. He picked up a loofa sponge and sprinkled it with her vanilla body wash. "I would have suggested another form of exercise."

He circled the sponge over her moist skin. His eyes found hers when he reached her waist and he lowered his hand to intentionally drop the sponge, replacing it with sudsy fingers that massaged the feminine swell of her hips. He capped her wrist when her head fell forward and she tried to avoid looking at him. He saw it then, exactly what he thought he'd find. It was hard to miss, actually.

"What?" she asked.

He pushed back a few damp locks of hair that were covering the side of her face.

"We're gonna fight this, Abbey. If it goes to trial, then it goes to trial, but we're gonna fight it all the way. We'll get a new lawyer if we have to - the best malpractice attorney in the state...in the country. We'll do whatever it takes to prove you did nothing wrong because it's the truth. You did nothing wrong."

"I know."

"Do you? Because I have doubts that you do."

Abbey had done such a good job of keeping her emotions in check ever since the day she found out she was being sued. Silently, though, it ate away at her and Jed knew it. He allowed her the time and the space to admit it on her own, but she didn't. It didn't matter though. Even without her admission, he could feel her most intimate fears.

Usually a self-assured, confident doctor, something had changed inside Abbey. It wasn't the opinion of others that gnawed at her heart. It was the feeling that maybe they weren't wrong. She lost confidence in the decisions she made that fateful night and the possibility that it was her fault that a man died on her table made her question everything about herself.

"I can't stop the doubts, Jed."

"You've said that before."

"I meant it. I have doubts. But I am glad I also have you to make them easier to deal with. Why are you so good at that anyway?"

"Instead of doubts, I have faith." He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into an embrace. "In you, I have all the faith in the world."

Abbey closed her eyes as he held her tight and kissed her from her lips down to her neck. "What did I ever do to deserve you?"

She pushed up against him when he moved her towards the wall. She covered the back of his head with her hands, her fingers threading through his wet brown hair, and when he trailed his finger down her stomach towards her legs, she pressed her mouth against his damp shoulder to muffle her moans.

This was what she needed. She needed him. And in that long, hot shower, their bodies merged together in an old, familiar way, not out of sexual desire this time, but out of a different kind of intimacy - the kind that's found between a husband and wife who share more than wedding bands, the kind that's born between lovers who are also trusted companions, devoted life partners, and the closest of friends.

The entire time he seduced her, he never stopped kissing her, never let go of her, never let her slip away for even a second. He held her in his arms protectively that day and he loved her the way only he could.

* * *

When they stepped into the courthouse later that afternoon, Abbey held her head high and swayed with an unbreakable spirit, energized by determination. It didn't surprise Jed, for he knew his wife's talent for donning a public mask.

It was one thing to expose her vulnerability to her husband, the one person in the world who knew everything about her, even things she had yet to discover about herself. It was quite another to show everyone else, for the very first time, that the wrongful death suit had rattled her so deeply.

In a tailored lavender blouse with a knee-length skirt and matching jacket that were of a darker hue of purple, she waltzed in a pair of leather taupe heels across the marble floor. Around her neck hung a single strand of pearls, easily seen since her dark auburn hair had been pulled back into a sophisticated French twist.

Jed walked beside her up the stairs as a couple of reporters gathered at the top. He avoided making eye contact, but when it looked like the infamous Lydia Gyles of Channel 7 was about to approach, he waved her off, slipped his hand into Abbey's, and led her around the corner and into the courtroom. He left her then as he took his seat in the front row and she continued to the other side of the bar to join her lawyer, Tom.

On the other side sat Arlene Niederlander, an older woman, still grieving nearly two years after losing her husband. Abbey tried to steal just one glance at her, but she found it hard to turn away. Instead of feeling bitter or angry at Arlene for having filed the wrongful death suit, she felt nothing but compassion.

Arlene had aged ten years since the night her husband died. Living without her soulmate had certainly affected her in ways that no one else could understand, not even Abbey. If she ever lost Jed, it would shatter her very existence, just as it seemed to have done to Arlene.

"What's wrong?" Tom asked Abbey.

"Nothing," she replied as she reluctantly took her eyes off Arlene.

"Don't look remorseful, Abbey. There's no better way to prove to the judge that she has a case."

"Her husband died. I am remorseful."

"You didn't cause his death. Stop behaving like you did."

"I'm not," she snapped quietly. "But regardless of what happened, Bill Niederlander died in my care. I was supposed to save him and I couldn't, so excuse me for having a little bit of sympathy for his widow."

She sat down and waited for the hearing to begin. Soon, the room was buzzing with spectators, most from the Niederlander family. Abbey looked over her shoulder to see Jed sitting behind her, nodding confidently as he leaned forward to put a hand on top of the railing.

"You're fine," he whispered. "Everything's going to be fine."

Love pouring out of his big baby blues, he locked into her stare for one solid minute. Abbey then covered his hand with hers before she turned forward to see the judge entering the courtroom and to hear the chatter slowly fading.

TBC


	14. Chapter 14

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 14

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: After a morning jog, Jed comforted Abbey in the shower before they left for her malpractice hearing; Liz helped Doug Westin register to vote during a GOTV rally on the University of New Hampshire campus (Chapter 8); Bill Niederlander's operation/death took place in Chapters 7 and 8 of The Nobel Laureate

Summary: Abbey learns her fate during her malpractice hearing; the Bartlet campaign gets a new volunteer

* * *

Abbey sat back in her chair on the defendant's side of the aisle and listened as colleagues took the stand, one by one, to describe the chaos in the operating room the night Bill Niederlander died. It had been nearly two years since Mr. Niederlander had passed away from surgical complications and still, a little bit of guilt gnawed at Abbey.

She remembered that day. It was etched in her mind forever. She also remembered the night before, sitting under the bright lights of the kitchen table and sluggishly wiping at her eyes as she fought off her exhaustion.

"It's late, Abbey," Jed had told her. "You should get some sleep."

"I'm not finished yet," she had replied while she stitching Lizzie's Wonder Woman get-up. Zoey's Hershey's Kiss costume sat beside her, a string of sparkling glitter now drying over a layer of glue on the Hershey's logo.

"What else is there to do? The costumes look great."

"Tomorrow's Halloween, Jed. They've been looking forward to this for months. They have to look better than great."

"Honey, they do."

"If I don't make it home in time to help them get ready, I want to show you how to do Ellie's hair so she looks like a storybook version of Alice In Wonderland."

"What do you mean if you're not home in time? I thought you were getting out early tomorrow."

"I'm supposed to, but you never know when emergencies might happen."

She was right. That emergency was Bill Niederlander, the 74-year-old diabetic who had already made it through one operation with flying colors. Abbey didn't expect him to develop an infection, she didn't expect to have to wheel him back into surgery, and she didn't expect that this time, he wouldn't make it out alive.

Despite the hospital investigation, the support from her peers, and the reassurance from the staff who aided her in the O.R. during the initial surgery and from the ones who assisted in the second operation, she never fully escaped the second-guessing that followed.

Did she really do all she could? Was she alert enough to make life and death decisions, or had she been so worn out from working on her daughters' Halloween costumes the night before that she missed something?

Technically, she knew she wasn't to blame. The internal investigation and autopsy proved that. But emotionally, a myriad of doubts - in her skills, her competence, and her knowledge - had invaded her every thought, just as they had whenever she lost a patient.

Jed witnessed Abbey's grief the first time that had happened. It was early in her residency and although she eventually moved on, every time she failed to save a life, he knew it brought her right back to a place she didn't want to be, a place where she was a young M.D. again - inexperienced and uncertain, overly cautious and at times, even scared.

The wrongful death suit Arlene Niederlander filed did the same thing. That piece of paper exposed all of Abbey's wounds and if the judge confirmed what Arlene alleged, Jed wondered if his wife would ever completely recover from the blow.

Following a parade of witnesses, Judge Nguyen brandished his gavel to calm a frisky courtroom. He wouldn't need time to render his decision, he announced.

He had already read the court documents, the results of the hospital's investigation, and the depositions. He had studied Bill Niederlander's medical history and entertained the notion of independent experts who pointed to the patient's age and diabetes as playing a significant role in the liver infection that forced Abbey to pull him back into the O.R. He listened closely to what Abbey's fellow doctors and scrub nurses had to say and then, he weighed Arlene's claim.

At the end of an emotional afternoon, he uttered the words Jed and Abbey prayed they would hear.

"Case dismissed!" he declared from his perch.

Not even a second passed before Abbey turned to find Jed. He was there, waiting with his arms open and as he approached, she practically jumped into his embrace, letting out a sigh she had suppressed from the moment the judge had taken his seat.

"I knew it," he whispered in her ear. "I told you from the start this would happen. You owe me ten bucks."

Abbey lowered her head and laughed softly against his chest. "You're gonna get that...and more."

As the courtroom began to clear out, she let go of her hold on Jed and made her way towards Arlene. She didn't have any specific words on her mind, but just the look that she gave the older woman was enough to convey her deepest thoughts of sympathy. Arlene nodded to acknowledge the sentiment, then turned and in a gesture that shocked Abbey to her core, she allowed Kyle Nelson to take her by the hand and lead her away.

Abbey knew that Kyle had been the Niedlerlanders' personal physician for years, but she took for granted how close he really was to that family. Standing there and seeing it for herself made her understand a little better why Kyle had been so judgmental and furious after Bill's death. The scene piqued her curiosity as much as it did Jed's.

"You okay?" Jed asked, having seen what she did from across the courtroom.

"Yeah." Abbey picked up her purse and joined him on the other side of the bar.

"Kyle Nelson had something to do with this. That bastard."

"Maybe. Maybe not."

"Come on."

"Everything bad that happens to me can't be blamed on some hot dog doctor who harassed me in med school, Jed. It is possible Arlene filed all on her own."

"Anything's possible."

"I don't know and I don't care. I'm just glad it's over."

"We all are," a voice boomed from behind her.

Abbey turned to find Robert Nolan, her faithful friend since the days of her residency interviews. "You were great up there."

"All I did was tell the truth." Robert extended his hand to Jed. "Jed, how are you?"

"Doing a lot better now that we're through with this nonsense."

"Let me just say that you've been doing one hell of a job on the campaign trail. Keep it up. We can't risk Elliot Roush representing us in Washington."

"I'll do my best."

"As for you," Robert looked at Abbey. "I knew this would turn out exactly the way it did. When are you going to learn to start listening to me?"

"I've been telling her the same thing," Jed interjected.

"Are you guys finished with the 'I told you so's' yet?"

"Nope," the two men answered simultaneously.

"Seriously," Robert started. "I'm glad it all worked out. I've gotta get back to the hospital. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Thanks, Robert." Abbey gave him a gracious smile and when he left, she turned her attention towards her husband.

Jed returned that playful look she threw his way. "I say this calls for lunch."

"You're hungry already? It's only been a few hours since breakfast."

He shrugged. "Then we'll do dessert."

"I knew that was coming." Abbey chuckled.

"It's better this way. We'll save our appetites so that when the girls get home from school, we can go to Patsy's for dinner." That was sure to get her approval. It was Abbey's favorite restaurant.

"Just as long as we don't call it a celebration."

"Damn. I guess I'm gonna have to cancel the balloons," he teased. "Give me some credit. A man still died. But now that it's clear to the world that he died from a liver infection and not from anything you did, we're going to have a nice dinner. We're not doing it to 'celebrate,' per se. We're doing it to mark the end of the case and to further emphasize the fact that I do know what I'm talking about once in a while."

Abbey rolled her eyes. "Oh, brother."

"I told you I wasn't done. From now on, when I say you're the world's greatest doctor, just accept the fact that it's true. It's been stated in a court of law."

"I didn't hear the judge say that."

"He said it with his eyes."

She chuckled once again. "Don't you have to get back to work at some point?"

"At some point, but not now. Let's get out of here. I want some chocolate cheesecake."

"Wait." Curling her fingers around his tie, she pulled him in close. "I wouldn't have made it through this without your support."

"That's something you'll always have, Babe." He kissed her then, but when she broke the kiss and suspiciously stared at him, he didn't fight it. "All right, I had one cigarette while I was waiting for you to get ready."

Abbey shook her head. "All those 'I told you so's' and you never once admitted it. You were just as nervous as I was."

"I wasn't nervous."

"No?" She slipped her hand in the crook of his arm as they began to walk out.

"No." Jed eyed her up and down, lustfully remembering their morning tryst. "Sweet Knees, don't question me about wanting a cigarette after that sexy little body of yours seduced me so fiercely in the shower."

"I seduced you?"

"You did."

"You have a weak grasp of reality," she said as they turned the corner to face a television camera heading towards them from the other end of the building.

"Good thing I'm so talented in other ways." He jumped when Abbey pinched his rear. "See, there you go again - seducing me - on camera no less."

"Shut up, Darling."

"Dirty talk. It just never ends with you."

Abbey laughed.

* * *

"Anything?" Derek poked his head into the communications bullpen back at Bartlet campaign headquarters.

"No." Christine shook her head.

The waiting was just as difficult for the staffers. To avoid making Abbey's hearing a three-ring circus by bringing them along, Jed had specifically asked them to stay away. He knew the press would be there and he suspected a few low-level Elliot Roush staffers would also be in attendance to report back to their boss, but there was nothing he could do about that. The only thing Jed could control was his own staff. And that, he did.

"I told him to call right away."

"You know how these things are. They take hours sometimes."

From down the hall, a curious college student approached the only voices he heard. He wedged himself behind Derek and waited for a break in the conversation to introduce himself.

"Hi. I'm Doug Westin. I called about volunteering with the campaign."

Derek shook his hand. "Our volunteer coordinator stepped out for lunch. Let me take you to the field office. They're hunting for volunteers to canvass."

"Canvass? What's that?" Doug asked as he followed Derek down the narrow corridor.

"Going door-to-door, dropping off literature with Dr. Bartlet's campaign issues, and talking to people about voting for him."

"Oh, I can do that."

"Fantastic." Derek gestured Doug to enter the field office. "This is our field director, Randy. Randy, Doug Westin. He's here for a volunteer position."

"You are a godsend!" An enthusiastic Randy grabbed a handful of position papers and handed them to Doug.

"Randy will take good care of you," Derek assured Doug. "I need to go call our candidate."

After Derek left, a nervous Doug addressed Randy. "So, uh, what is all this for?"

"Read them, get caught up on the issues, and we'll try to send you out with tonight's crew."

"Wow!" Doug rapidly flipped through the pages. "There's a lot here."

"Well, you won't need to read all of it, just the stuff you don't know. College student, right?"

"Yeah."

"Then you probably know most of the ins and outs of politics. And I assume since you're here, you know a little something about Jed Bartlet. This should all be review." If Randy only knew how uninformed Doug really was.

"Review. Right. That's what it is. Review. Okay, well, I guess I'll just sit anywhere to make my way through this?"

"Here is fine." Randy pointed to an abandoned desk in the corner, helped Doug settle in, then turned to return to his own desk.

"Oh, uh, Randy?"

"Yeah?"

"When is election day this year?"

* * *

"No, Jenny, it's fine...I know, he's been busy."

Though she didn't believe the excuse Jenny had given, Abbey tried to convince her friend that she understood why Leo wasn't able to come to the phone. It had been over a week since the intervention and this was the first time either of the McGarrys had called.

"You know what, Jenn, hang on. I think Jed just got out of the shower."

Abbey looked to her husband who had a towel wrapped around his waist. Jed took a few steps towards her, then stopped and shook his head.

"No, I was wrong," Abbey said into the phone. "He just turned the water back on...Okay, well, kiss Mallory for me. We'll talk again soon." She hung up the phone, then turned a glance towards Jed. "What was that?"

"I don't know what to say to Jenny."

"She called to find out about the hearing. A simple hello may have been appropriate." As Jed sat down at the edge of the bed, Abbey rubbed his bare shoulders. "You can't be mad at her for what happened."

"I'm not."

"She loves him, Jed. She didn't think he was ready to hear everything we had to say. She did what she thought was best."

"I said I'm not mad at her. I just don't know what to say to her."

"Then maybe it's time to call Leo."

Jed shook his head vehemently. "No."

"Jed..."

"He doesn't want to talk to me."

"How do you know that?"

"Did he come to the phone tonight when you were talking to Jenny?" Abbey didn't answer. "See? He's still just as pissed as he was."

"Then it's up to you to make the first move."

"Forget it."

"Don't be stubborn about this."

"I'm not being...HE'S the one who said he didn't want to hear from me! HE said that! He said he never wanted to hear my voice again. Remember?"

"We all said a lot of things that night, Jed. Emotions were running high."

"None of us said things like that. That's not just something you say when you're angry."

"Yes, it is. For Leo, right now - in the state he's in - yes, it is."

"I'm not going to call him, Abbey." It wasn't anger that drove his stubborn resolve. It was the fear of Leo's rejection.

"I think you're making a mistake by letting this thing drag on."

"I know you do. But you have to trust me. I know what I'm doing."

Jed sat there silently as Abbey poured a little lotion onto her hands and continued the shoulder rub.

TBC


	15. Chapter 15

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 15

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Zoey's teacher told Jed and Abbey that she suspected their daughter had developmental delays (Chapter 4); during a spat, Zoey pushed Ellie (Chapter 11)

Summary: Abbey confronts Jed about his denial of Zoey's problems; Jed and Abbey meet with a child psychologist

* * *

Zoey slept soundly in her mother's arms, her tiny hands gripping each other around Abbey's neck as she was lifted out of the car and carried to the house. The four-year-old had fallen into such a deep slumber that she never opened her eyes, even when Abbey adjusted her hold while struggling to find the key to the front door.

Stepping into the foyer, Abbey moved carefully towards the family room and laid Zoey down on the sofa. She draped a throw blanket over her sleeping form, tucking it in along the sides as she tenderly stroked the baby fine tendrils of hair off her little girl's face.

"MOM!" Liz bounded down the steps and trekked through the house in search of her mother.

"Shhh!" Abbey hushed her eldest daughter.

"Mom..." Liz out again, in a whisper this time, while following the sound of Abbey's voice into the family room.

"Not so loud. Has your father called?"

"No. Can I borrow your car?"

"Where are you going?"

"The campaign office. A bunch of my friends are gonna put Dad's signs in their yards."

"So have Dad bring home some yard signs."

"And then what? I'm supposed to take them to school with me and drag them around all day like a freak?"

Her sarcastic retort only annoyed Abbey. "Yes."

"No! I have to get them myself so I can take them over to Mindy's tonight."

"Why tonight?"

"Because I told her I would."

"Have you done your homework?"

"Yes."

"Have you cleaned up your room like I asked you to?"

"Yes. Why are you giving me a hard time?"

Abbey pulled Zoey's blanket to just below her chin, then stood to collect some of the toys strewn around the carpet. "I need my car. I have to go grocery shopping. There's nothing in the house."

"What am I supposed to do?"

"Get the signs tomorrow."

"I promised them I'd have them tonight."

"You shouldn't have done that."

"But I did!" Liz hovered right behind her mother as Abbey straightened up the room. "You know, this wouldn't be a problem if I had my own car."

"Not today, Lizzie."

"You and Dad said if I got a job and saved my money over the summer, you'd help me buy a car. I held up my end of the bargain."

"Elizabeth, did you hear me?" Abbey dropped the toys from her hands in a gesture that proved she wasn't in the mood to hear Liz's complaint. "I said not today."

"Fine." Liz eyed her little sister, then followed Abbey out of the family room. "What's wrong with Zoey?"

"What, for once you're thinking about someone other than yourself?" Abbey snapped, reacting out of frustration more than anger. When Liz started to leave, she grabbed her arm to stop her. "I didn't mean that. I'm sorry."

"What's wrong?"

"I'm having a bad day."

"Why? Is it about Zoey? Why isn't she at school? Is she sick?"

"Zoey had a problem at school today."

"What kind of problem?"

"A problem with..." Abbey trailed off, uncertain if she was ready to have this conversation.

"What? What's wrong with Zoey?"

Ready or not, Liz would find out soon anyway. Abbey preferred to tell her now. She placed her hands on the teen's shoulders and led her towards the kitchen table.

"A few weeks ago, her teacher told us that Zoey might be experiencing some delays."

"Delays?"

"Developmental delays."

"What does that mean exactly?" Liz took a seat and watched as Abbey took the one across from her.

"You know how Zoey was born so early? It's because of that. Babies who are born premature sometimes have problems down the road and that's what's going on with Zoey. She's not learning what she should be. She's behind the other kids her age."

"How can that be? Zoey's so smart. She can talk about anything. She tells stories all the time and she listens too. She knows how to push all my buttons because she pays attention and knows when things irritate me. She wouldn't be able to do that if she wasn't smart."

"Of course she's smart. Listen to me, it's very important that you know that Zoey is smart and that you never act like she's not. This has nothing to do with smart and dumb, Liz."

"Then what is it?"

"It's about how Zoey processes information. There are certain learning disabilities that can affect articulate children like Zoey. It has no affect on her speech patterns or her verbal abilities, but it affects her other behavior."

"That's what Zoey has? A learning disability?"

"We have an appointment with a child psychologist tomorrow to find out for sure, but yeah, I'm pretty confident she does."

"You said it affects her other behavior. How?"

"One of the signs that her teacher noticed was aggression. We've all seen Zoey lose her temper. It happens often, and she acts out physically when it does. That's because, emotionally, she doesn't know how to express herself any other way. Her teacher is concerned that if she doesn't learn to interact socially with her peers, it could keep her out of kindergarten next year."

"Why? Won't she grow out of this?"

"I hope so, but I don't know. And it's symptomatic of other problems."

"Like what?"

"Lots of other things. She can't tie her shoes, she can't zip her zipper, she can't hold crayons the way she's supposed to, she can't stay inside the lines of a coloring book or draw a rainbow. She can't always distinguish between colors, especially red. That's the one she has the most trouble with."

"We can teach her all that."

"I know we can."

"Then why are you acting like it's the end of the world? Who cares if she's behind now. If we all work with her, then she won't be behind for long and by next year, she'll know how to do all these things better than the other kids."

She was her father's daughter. Lizzie shared Jed's optimism. So much so that Abbey could close her eyes and imagine Jed saying those same words once he finally accepted the truth about Zoey.

"Are you willing to pitch in?"

"Sure! Ellie and I can teach her all kinds of things."

"Like what?"

"She's always bugging me to show her how to paint her nails. That's something fun we can do and it'll help her learn to stay inside the lines when she colors, right? We can teach her how to tie her shoes by making up a fun rhyme or something."

"Your father and I already tried that."

"Yeah, but that's you guys. She'll listen to us cause we're the cool big sisters."

"Hey, I resent that. I think I'm a pretty cool mom."

Liz hesitated until Abbey raised her brow. "Well...you're as cool as moms get."

"Is that what's called a good save?"

"You kinda backed me into a corner with that one."

"And you do have a reputation to uphold. God forbid it gets out that you think your mother is cool."

"I'll be ruined," Liz agreed with a nod and a soft smile. "You don't care about labels anyway."

"Seriously, if you want to help your sister, I think that's a great idea."

"Of course I'll help her. I know Ellie will too. And as for Zoey, she'll be so thrilled we're playing with her, she'll do whatever we tell her to."

"She probably will," Abbey chuckled.

"So see? There's nothing to worry about."

Abbey got up, reached for her car keys on the counter, and tossed them to Liz. "Go get your signs."

"Thanks. I can swing by the market if you want."

"It's okay. I'll order in."

"A really cool mom would order pizza or burgers."

"Good thing I don't care about labels." Abbey rested her chin on her hands and smiled mischievously at her daughter. "We'll be having a stew made of Mediterranean fish and tomato sauce with a side of brussel sprouts."

A disgusted Liz furrowed her brows on her way out. "I'm hitting the McDonald's drive-thru."

"Lizzie?"

"Yeah?"

Abbey approached her with open arms. She kissed Liz's forehead, then hugged her tightly.

* * *

"He called her stupid."

"He what?" Jed jumped to his feet and headed towards the phone.

"Jed, what are you doing?"

"What's his name? I want to call his parents."

"No." Abbey took the receiver out of his hand and slammed it down. "You can't do that."

"Why not?"

"I think that the best way to deal with this right now is to comfort Zoey."

"Why did he say it?"

"They were coloring Halloween pictures to hang on the wall and Zoey's job was to color the cat. The kids in her group told her to color it black, but Zoey used blue instead and when one of the kids asked her why she used blue, she told him it wasn't blue, it was black."

"So he called her stupid?"

"He told her it wasn't black. Then he pointed at some other colors and asked Zoey to identify them. Zoey got confused, which only made her angry, so she threw her crayons down and stormed off. When the teacher asked what happened, the kid said...he said Zoey's too stupid to be in their group."

"And Zoey heard that?"

"Yeah." Abbey nodded. "According to Amanda, Zoey burst into tears and screamed over and over that she's not stupid."

"Of course she's not stupid. That kid's parents should know about this."

"And I'm sure Amanda will tell them. But in the meantime, I'd like to focus on Zoey. After this all happened, Amanda took her to the office to try to calm her down."

"That's when she called you?"

"Yeah. The school tried to call you too."

"I was doing media rounds today."

"I told them. By the time I got there, Zoey was sitting in Amanda's lap, still in tears. She was so upset."

"Where is she now?"

"She took a nap and woke up a little while ago. I think she's watching cartoons."

"How is she?"

"She seems to have forgotten all about it."

"That's good." Relieved, he finally took off his coat.

Abbey waited a beat before she continued the conversation. "Jed?"

"Yeah?"

"We have that appointment with Dr. Jorgenson tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?"

"Yes, Jed. The 15th. You knew that."

"I forgot."

"Did you forget? Or did you block it out?"

Jed rolled his eyes as he walked away from her. "I forgot, all right? It's been a long week - for all of us."

She stepped around in front of him, forcing him to look at her. "You can't do this anymore. You can't pretend there isn't a problem. It's only going to make matters worse."

"I'm not pretending anything. I forgot. Don't read more into it..."

"I told Liz," Abbey said firmly.

"I wish you hadn't done that."

"She should know. So should Ellie."

"They're kids. This is the last thing they should be worried about."

"Why? You act like it's something that will scar them for life, like they should be ashamed that they have a sister who might have a learning disability."

"I didn't say that."

"Are you ashamed?"

For a second, Jed felt speechless. There were no words to help him express his feelings. A spark of outrage stung his very core when he heard that question. How could Abbey think that he'd ever be ashamed of any of his children?

Yes, he wanted to believe the best, but his denial wasn't a product of shame. It was simply the result of wanting the best for his daughter, a perfect life free of the problems and adversity that plague the rest of the world.

He stared at her silently at first, then looked her squarely in the eye and replied. "No, I'm not ashamed."

Abbey instantly regretted the question. "I know."

"Then why did you ask?"

"It was important to me to hear you say it. I've been going through books from my pediatrics and psych rotations in med school, reading some of the literature published on preemies and developmental disorders in my journals. They all say the same thing."

"Which is?"

"We have to be on the same page. I asked that question because I wanted to be sure that we are. Zoey knows that something is wrong. Every time the other kids do something she can't, she feels like a failure. If we're going to help her, then we have to do it as a family. I can't do it alone while you convince yourself that everything is fine. I need your help."

His mind now struggling to hold on to the ever-decreasing possibility that Abbey was overreacting, Jed allowed himself a little leeway to listen to his wife's plea. He trusted her with all his heart, not only as a spouse, but as a medical professional. If she believed, so passionately, that their child was having problems, then he would have to let go of the reservations that fed his denial - for Zoey's sake.

"I'll do whatever it takes to help Zoey."

* * *

The next morning, the Bartlets listened to the therapist with an open mind. Dr. Jorgenson showed them drawings from Zoey's picture book, ones she had drawn on her own and ones she was instructed to draw.

Jed smiled as he took one of the pictures out of Abbey's hand. It was a family portrait he was holding. Two stick figures, he assumed were himself and Abbey, stood in front of a square house. Three smaller stick figures stood closeby. The sketch was pretty good, but it was obvious that the coloring frustrated the little girl. Random streaks of brown, red, and yellow were scribbled all over the page.

"She had trouble coloring her mother's hair," Dr. Jorgenson told them.

Jed rejected the implication. "At the risk of sounding like I'm making light of this, I have to say that Abbey's hair isn't exactly the color of a Crayola crayon. She's got highlights and lowlights...brown and red...I wouldn't even know how to depict it if I had limited shades."

"Yes, but Zoey initially tried to use yellow. It was only after she saw the color on paper and I reminded her that it was her sister Ellie who had blond hair that she realized she had confused the two colors in the box. What you see here...all the scribbles with the colors all mixed up together...that's the result of the temper tantrum that followed."

Abbey threw the drawing onto the table beside them. "Okay, I think it's been established a million times over that Zoey has trouble identifying colors. What can we do about it?"

"It's not just colors. She has trouble with numbers too."

"My daughter can count," Jed insisted. "I've heard her do it."

"Yes, but have you seen her do it? You're right, Zoey can count. What she can't do is write the numbers out, even after I've written them out for her."

"So what?"

"There's no question that Zoey is an articulate child. She just seems to have some difficulty with visual things - puzzles, numbers, colors. She can't tie her shoe or do simple tasks she should be doing at this age."

"We know. That's why we're here."

"And I'm glad you are because I believe that Zoey has what's called a nonverbal learning disability - or NVLD. It means one part of her brain isn't functioning the way it's supposed to."

Abbey instinctively reached for Jed's hand. "There's an impairment in the right hemisphere of her brain."

"What are you saying?" Jed turned his attention from Abbey to the doctor. "What are you saying, that my daughter is brain damaged?"

"No, no, Jed." Abbey stroked his hand.

"Her brain is not damaged," Dr. Jorgenson added. "The right side of her brain, which is responsible for visual and spatial things just isn't as strong as it could be. That's all."

"That's all?" Jed was shocked by her cavalier attitude. "That's a pretty big thing."

"It doesn't have to be. NVLD is not that uncommon a problem, especially for kids like Zoey, who experienced traumatic births. What it means is that her verbal skills are excellent, but she has trouble with visual and spatial skills. She can adapt to that as long as she...and you...understand what's happening and don't force her to do things she can't do."

"I don't understand. What things are you talking about? Are you saying she'll never learn to read and write?"

"It's nothing like that. Zoey WILL be able to read and write. She's just going to have trouble at first. For example, she may not be able to grasp the main idea of a paragraph and instead, she'll latch on to inconsequential details. She may not be as quick to answer multiple choice quizzes or write essays that express all her thoughts during timed tests. It doesn't mean she can't do it, it just might take her longer than it would take others."

"Can we fix it?"

"It's not a question of fixing it. For one, Zoey isn't broken. She's just going to need some extra attention during these early years. By the time she's an adult, she will probably be able to do anything she wants. She could be the first female president for all we know. Her options are not limited because of this."

Squeezing Abbey's hand, Jed breathed a sigh of relief. "Finally, some good news."

"Before we delve deeper into this, though, there is a nonacademic component to NVLD that we have to address. Zoey has had trouble interacting with other kids."

"Yes, she has," Abbey admitted.

"She wants to play with her peers, but she can't pick up on nonverbal cues. You said she pushed her sister during an argument at home?"

"That's right," Jed replied. "Ellie took a roll of paper towels from her and Zoey shoved her so hard, Ellie fell down and twisted her ankle."

"It's because Ellie didn't tell Zoey what she was doing, so all Zoey knew was that she was holding a roll of paper towels and someone snatched it out of her hand for no good reason. She temporarily lost all rational thought and felt victimized in a sense, like she had to defend herself."

"Defend herself against Ellie?"

"Against anyone. The whole thing startled her. She reacted the only way she could at that split second...physically. We can teach her alternatives."

"Like what?"

"It's all about impulses. With you or me, facial expressions or gestures are enough to inform us what someone else may be thinking, but Zoey doesn't have that luxury. So anything someone does has the potential to be misinterpreted until her brain has the chance to process it and that could take several minutes."

"So we control her impulses?"

"No. We teach her how to control her own impulses. She knows that hitting is wrong. In my conversation with her, she told me flat-out that Mommy and Daddy get mad when she hits or pushes people. You just have to keep emphasizing that over and over again until she learns new ways to express herself when she feels defensive."

"But long-term...will it get better?" Abbey asked.

"We caught this early, so yes, I think it will. As she gets older, she'll eventually learn to read nonverbal cues the same way you and I do, as long as we help her. Your other daughters will be instrumental in helping her."

"They love Zoey. I'm sure that won't be a problem."

"They have to learn to relate to Zoey in a way different than they would each other. Teasing, for instance, may not go over so well for a while, at least until Zoey learns how to tell when her sisters are playing around with her and when they're serious."

"We'll take care of that," Abbey assured her.

"I figured you would. My primary concern for Zoey right now is her self esteem."

"She's 4," Jed reminded the doctor.

"She'll be 5 in less than two months. That's an important distinction. At four years and ten months, she should be fairly confident in peer interactions. She's not. She doesn't feel like she fits in. She feels like the other kids don't like her, like she isn't as good as they are. And it's those kinds of feelings that cause her to get angry at school and to act out the way she has been. If we don't do something about it now, it could lead to serious depression and self esteem issues by the time she starts kindergarten."

"Depression? Are you kidding me?" Jed shook his head in disbelief. "Why can't she just enjoy being a kid? Why?"

Abbey leaned in closer to her husband, resting her head on his shoulder and raising her hand up his arm lovingly.

* * *

It was a quiet ride back to the farmhouse that morning. Abbey spent most of the time staring out the window while Jed focused on the road in front of him. Both lost in their own thoughts about the signals they had missed since Zoey's birth, neither said a word.

After Jed pulled up the drive, he parked the car and turned to Abbey. "Tell me now, is there anything at all you're keeping from me? Is there anything else I should know about this right hemisphere crap? Any medical consequences?"

"You know everything I do."

Assured that he did, Jed nodded. "We'll get through this just like we have everything else."

"All the times I punished her, Jed."

"What?"

"Lizzie once took her toy truck out of her hand when she was two. Zoey hit her over the head and I got mad. I sent her to time-out."

"Abbey..."

"I've done that a lot. She has a tantrum and my solution is always time-out. It never occurred to me..."

Jed slipped his arm around her. "You can't change the past, Abbey. No regrets, okay? It just muddies things up."

"If I had known..."

"Don't relive all this stuff today. It's not going to do anyone any good."

"But if I had known, I would have explained to her why it was wrong to hit. I would have helped her understand..."

"We both would have, but we didn't know. Let's just be thankful that we do now and that we can do something about it." He got out of the car and walked around to Abbey's door to help her out too.

"We have to tell Ellie."

"We will." As they reached the porch, Jed stopped. "Abbey?"

She stopped too. "Yeah?"

"I was just thinking...the past month...you were right. Her teacher, Amanda, was right. Everyone was right. I don't know why I didn't listen. I should have faced it earlier."

"Shhh," she said as she gently pressed her index finger to his lips. "No regrets. You just told me that."

Jed lifted his hand to his face and covered her finger with his own. "Easier said than done, I guess."

TBC


	16. Chapter 16

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 16

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Jed and Abbey learned that Zoey has a nonverbal learning disability (NVLD); Elliot Roush proposed a law that would target Abbey (Chapter 10); Abbey's malpractice suit was dismissed (Chapter 14)

Summary: The Bartlet girls help Zoey; Jed is more enthusiastic than ever about running for office; Christine admires her boss's talents during a media interview; Jed and his staff await the latest poll numbers

* * *

"Do you know where this one goes?"

"No."

"Think about it. Where do you think it fits?"

"I don't know." Zoey shrugged.

"Look here, Zo. Look at the edge." Liz traced her finger around the puzzle piece to show Zoey the jagged points.

"And then look at the puzzle," Ellie added. "Where does that piece fit?"

A frustrated Zoey shrugged once again. "I don't know."

Ellie slipped the piece into place. "It goes right there. See how it fit nicely?"

When Zoey's disappointment cast a shadow over her usually upbeat features, Liz was quick to soothe her worries. "It's okay, Zoey. It took me a long time to figure out how to do it. I was a lot older than you when I learned."

"Me too," Ellie agreed.

That was enough to draw the four-year-old out of her gloomy expression. Both Liz and Ellie knew they were bending the truth slightly, but as long as it made their little sister feel a little better, it was well worth it.

From outside the kitchen, Abbey spied on her three daughters. She had raised them to be more than just sisters. She wanted them to be friends and so, from the moment Ellie was born, she emphasized the importance of the special bond between siblings. Watching them now left her with no doubt that her words of wisdom had sunk in.

It had been only a few days since she and Jed sat down with their Liz and Ellie and explained to them that Zoey had a nonverbal learning disability that impaired her visual and spatial skills, and in that time, the girls had spent hours voluntarily tutoring their sister.

Liz taught her to paint her nails. Zoey never really got the hang of it, but that didn't bother Liz. So what if she had to clean up the mess with nail polish remover, then redo Zoey's nails herself? It didn't matter because in that hour, Zoey gained the confidence that came with doing something her big sister knew how to do.

Ellie had invited Zoey into her room more than once so they could read together. Ellie would read one line, then she'd help Zoey sound out the words to the next line with the very same Dr. Seuss classics that helped her when she was Zoey's age. Zoey struggled every step of the way, but with Ellie's patience and her knack for treating the blunders with humor rather than scorn, it became a fun activity for both of them.

Reluctant to disturb the trio, Abbey hesitantly approached them. "Are you girls ready for breakfast?"

"We're just waiting for Daddy." Ellie gestured towards Jed, who had managed to stretch the phone cord all the way to the stove, where he stood to flip his pancakes.

Abbey snuck up behind him and took the pan out of his hand.

Jed whispered 'thank you' to his wife, then spoke into the receiver. "I'll be sure to do that...of course, I will...you bet...thanks!"

"What was that about?" Abbey asked when it was obvious the call was over.

"That was a campaign contribution. Ten thousand dollars."

"Way to go, Dad!" Liz cheered him on from across the kitchen.

"Ten thousand dollars over the phone?" Abbey questioned skeptically. "How'd you manage that?"

"It was actually pretty easy."

"You know him?"

"Nah. He's just some guy on my call sheet. A Massachusetts native who's a huge contributor to Democratic campaigns. He saw some of the earlier polling numbers and was nervous about the prospect of Elliot Roush making it to Washington."

"Who wouldn't be?" she sneered as she retrieved a large plate for the pancakes. "I thought your numbers were up though."

"That's just Derek's wishful thinking. We'll get the new poll numbers in today. It doesn't matter anyway. This guy was looking at the ones from two weeks ago."

"Wouldn't it make more sense to solicit donations after you get the new numbers?"

"I thought so too, but Derek wants to use the old numbers to get more money. He's right too. This morning alone, we raised twice as much as we did all last week."

"Well, that has nothing to do with numbers."

Jed pulled out a carton of juice from the fridge and a can of New Hampshire maple syrup from the pantry. "What do you mean it has nothing to do with the numbers?"

Abbey shrugged. "I just don't think it's about the poll numbers."

"Then what?"

"When it comes to you, I've always said when you set your mind to something, you will accomplish it, Jed. Could it be that you're warming up to the idea of fundraising?"

"No." He quickly rejected the notion. "I'm not fond of fundraising and I still don't feel right about calling people I don't know...or worse, people I met once about 10 years ago...and asking them for money."

"But?"

"But if it's the only way to make sure a scumbag like Roush doesn't get the power he so richly wants, then so be it."

"You're selling yourself short."

"How so?"

"You may not like the fundraising, but you just acknowledged that it's something you have to do. And I think there's more to it than you're willing to admit."

"Not everything I say is laced with hidden innuendo, Abigail."

"No, but this is. It's not just about Roush winning anymore."

"It's not?"

"Nope. You WANT to win. You were uncertain before, but now you know it in your heart. You're the right man for the job and you've finally realized it."

She was right. It took him some time to reach that conclusion, but Jed Bartlet knew, now more than ever, that he could do this. Roush's attack on Abbey had energized him, and that energy had spawned the kind of enthusiasm he had at the start of the primary campaign when he was motivated by an inherent sense of duty. It was that enthusiasm that lured him into the race in the first place. And in the months that followed, that enthusiasm was painfully squashed as he became jaded and cynical by the dirtiness that soiled politics.

The rules were different now and it wasn't just because Roush went after Abbey. It was about what Jed considered right versus wrong; it was that Elliot Roush had, once again, appointed himself sole arbiter of social issues and if Jed didn't stop him from shoving his own moral compass down everyone else's throats, then he'd be guilty of the worst crime of all - apathy in the face of corruption. He owed his party more than that. He owed his state more than that. And in the end, he realized he owed himself more than that.

"Don't you ever get tired of being right?" he teased his wife as he poured juice for his daughters.

"Nope."

* * *

"Let me put it this way. I'm not against any viable measure that would ensure patient safety without obscene repercussions."

Dressed in a black and blue pin-striped suit and tie, Jed looked comfortable on the set of Good Morning New Hampshire. He spoke strongly, with conviction, not wavering on any of his issues, despite prodding from the host.

"So is it the language you object to?"

"It's more than the language, Anna," he replied. "The law Mr. Roush is proposing is short-sighted in many ways. I'm afraid that if we embrace it, as it's written now, it'll mean nothing but logistical and personal headaches in the future - for all of us."

"How do you figure?"

"We live in a society plagued by erroneous lawsuits, but Mr. Roush leaves no margin of error for all the frivolous lawsuits against physicians, all the ones that are dismissed before trial. His measure would punish competent doctors who have the misfortune of being burdened with three pissed off patients over the course of their careers."

"You say competent doctors, but how many of the doctors we're discussing - the ones who have malpractice complaints pending against them - are actually competent?"

"A great many. Let's not forget that doctors, for the most part, are selfless human beings who take on a noble career of saving lives. You want to know how many competent ones get sued? I don't have exact figures, but suffice it to say, the majority. And more than half of those are found innocent of wrongdoing. My wife is living proof of that."

"So if patient safety is one of your concerns, what should we be talking about then?"

"What we should be talking about is doctors who repeatedly LOSE malpractice cases. We should be talking about hospitals that are vulnerable egregious medical mistakes because they don't have a system to check and recheck doctors' orders, or ones that don't meet the minimum sanitary conditions set forth by state and federal government. We don't have the resources to do it all so we have to decide where our money and our efforts will yield the highest benefits."

"When you say we should be going after doctors who repeatedly lose malpractice cases, isn't that essentially the same as saying we should monitor the doctors who are sued?"

"Not at all. Elliot Roush is working on an assumption of guilt even after proven innocent. That's a dangerous philosophy and a ridiculous legal argument. As an attorney himself, he should be preserving the judicial system, not looking for ways to undermine it."

"He turned down our invitation to be here this morning, but his staff did release a statement clarifying his position on this issue. What he's saying seems to be that when it comes to healthcare mistakes and medical malpractice, we're better off safe than sorry. What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing - right now. But what happens when doctors no longer want to risk their license and twelve years of medical training to the litigious whims of a patient in the state of New Hampshire? What happens when there's a bus accident on I-93 and no trauma surgeons in our state? Or when emergency rooms start shutting down and pregnant couples have to drive to Boston or Vermont for care because the few OB/GYNs willing to risk a malpractice suit here are booked solid for a year?"

Standing off-camera and watching Jed on a feedback monitor on the set, Christine beamed with delight. He wasn't speaking as the husband of a physician. He was speaking as a lawmaker concerned about his constituents.

"Isn't that a scare tactic? Doctors aren't flocking out of New Hampshire and to suggest they are gives the impression that you're just looking for support any way you can get it."

"I already have a lot of support, Anna, not only from the fine residents of New Hampshire, but from the New Hampshire Medical Board and the AMA. There's precedent here. A similar law proposed in Florida led to a decrease in doctors around that state. I want to prevent that from happening here in New Hampshire."

He never backed down. Not once did Jed allow Anna to break him.

"But in doing so, are you neglecting another priority - preventing doctors from making mistakes that, if not fatal, can have far-reaching consequences?"

"Not at all. As I said, my stand on this issue reflects more than just protecting doctors. Patients who've been the victim of real malpractice deserve justice. Do you think they'll get it in a state where the penalty for malpractice is revoking a license? What's the incentive to investigate malpractice cases when the punishment towards physicians is so great that it threatens the foundation of our state healthcare system?"

Christine wasn't surprised at his ability to think quick on his feet. The very first thing she learned about Jed was that he was a gifted public speaker. If ever there was a man who knew how to work the press, how to morph into the role of candidate in front of the camera, it was him. He made mistakes now and then, the result of little experience, but unlike so many others Christine had groomed to take public office, Jed had the one talent that couldn't be taught - an oratory style with the perfect mix of charisma, grace, and passion.

He was ready, she thought to herself. With a little luck on their side, Jed would become the next United States Congressman representing New Hampshire's first district. And the thought of that made Christine smile even broader.

"Onto another topic, Dr. Bartlet. I notice you're wearing a white ribbon today."

"I am," Jed answered Anna as he glanced down at the ribbon pinned to his lapel.

"What does it symbolize?"

"Simply put: taking action. About five years ago, my wife, Abbey, was brutally attacked. Her attacker will be getting out of prison next year and because of that, there's been some mention of it in the press. That publicity was a good thing as far as I'm concerned because it put me in touch with a Nashua couple who just kicked off a White Ribbon Campaign to stop violence against women."

"By doing what?"

"By enforcing laws already on the books and passing even stricter laws around the country, by implementing programs to educate women and children - free of charge - on how best to defend themselves against would-be attackers, and by advocating a zero tolerance policy against anyone who commits these crimes with a prison sentence of more than 25 years."

"Is this a reaction to allegations that you're soft on crime?"

"I would have joined this campaign regardless of whether or not I was running for office. Violence, in general, has always been important to me and if you look at my record while serving as legislator in the state house, you'll see that I've always come down hard on criminals. In fact, following what happened to Abbey, I introduced a bill in the New Hampshire House that eventually passed, ensuring stiffer penalties for offenders who target women and children. This..." he ran his finger along the satin ribbon, "has nothing to do with my congressional campaign."

"So you introduced this bill in the state house, but when it came time for your wife's attacker to be sent to prison, you and your wife supported the DA's offer of a plea bargain. How do you reconcile your decision back then with what you said just now?"

Christine tensed as she awaited Jed's reply. They had talked about this question and though she tried to help him work out a response, he insisted a canned answer would play out terribly over the airwaves.

"I can see where people might be confused about where I stand, but rest assured, my loyalties are, and have always been, with the victims of these crimes. In our particular case, there were extenuating circumstances and we were warned that a trial would most likely not end in a conviction, so after quite a bit of thought, Abbey decided not to fight for a trial. She figured a plea bargain was the best way to guarantee her attacker would see the inside of a prison cell. I stood by her back then and I stand by her now. I think she definitely made the right decision."

"The way I understand it, this was such a complicated case that the DA would have been pursued a trail if Abbey had asked him to. Which makes me wonder, should it have been her decision to make? In committing a crime against her, he committed a crime against the state."

"You're asking me if Abbey should have had a say in whether or not there should be a trial for a man who abducted her from a hospital parking lot, tormented her with a knife, and threatened to kill her. My answer to that is ABSOLUTELY!"

"Why?"

"No judge, no jury, no prosecutor, and no defense attorney can truly understand what she went through that night. Those are memories she's going to live with forever and though she's overcome the trauma of what happened, I think part of it will always stay with her. So yes, I think it's perfectly reasonable that she have a say in the state's case against the man who changed her life, not to mention mine. That's what our legal system is all about. It can't give victims back the quote-unquote rights that an offender may have stolen - the right to privacy, the right to feel safe in one's own home, to walk down the street without having to be armed to protect themselves - but despite all that, it's an extraordinarily complex model that's designed to give victims an opportunity to speak out, while simultaneously protecting the constitutional rights of accused criminals, and despite all its many flaws, that right there makes it an instrument of justice that I believe is the best in the world."

Christine was impressed. The way Jed handled that question gave Anna a chance to transition seamlessly into a less personal topic.

"Which brings us to my next question. Despite the fact that the state of New Hampshire hasn't executed anyone since the 1930s, the death penalty is still legal here. Should it be abolished? And more to the point, as a U.S. Congressman, would you vote for or against a federal law to abolish the death penalty in every state?"

* * *

"He was incredible, Derek! He said all the right things. I mean ALL the right things."

Derek was caught by surprise at the way Christine was gushing over Jed's performance. "I know. I was watching."

"Watching it on television was nothing like watching him live. He's got this glow you wouldn't believe. He wasn't just another candidate up there. He had winner written all over him."

"I've said that all along."

"He's funny and witty and charming and handsome."

"You sound like you're describing a date." Though he wasn't kidding, Christine dismissed the statement.

"I really think we struck gold with this one. He's not JUST going to be a congressman. I think Jed Bartlet can go as far as he wants in professional politics. He's the whole package - good looking, intelligent, sincere, caring. How often do we get that?"

"Hardly ever." His suspicion piqued, he stepped around her and closed the door to his office.

"What?" Christine seemed oblivious to all the signals that concerned Derek.

"Are you falling for Jed?"

"What?" She was shocked by the question. "Are you kidding?"

"This is me, Chris. I know you pretty well. You've had that spark in your eye for days now. It's the same spark you had the last time..."

"I can't believe you're asking me this."

"I can't believe you're not answering."

Before Christine could give him a solid answer, Larry shouted for his colleagues. "GUYS, get in here!"

Exchanging one last glance on their way out, Derek led the way to the communications office, squeezing through the crowd that was overflowing out into the hall.

Bartlet campaign headquarters was buzzing with excitement that evening. The new poll numbers hadn't been released yet, but the staff was huddled together, along with interns and volunteers, all waiting for the phone call that could change the course of the election.

During a five-day media surge designed to bring attention to the policies close to his heart, Jed's top advisors predicted he had won over enough voters to give Roush a run for his money.

He had to be sincere, his staff had told him. He had to prove that he had the drive to represent these people in the nation's capital, that he had the intellect to sift through mind-numbing legislation in the course of fighting for their best interests, and that he had the diplomacy of a thousand kings so that he could cross the aisle, if need be, to do what was best for New Hampshire.

Jed was confident that he did all that, but the moment of truth was seconds away. His eyes, brimming with anxiety, followed Derek towards the ringing phone.

He tried to decipher clues from Derek's body language and posture, but they were too cryptic to betray the news. So Jed waited and alongside everyone else, he took a few steps closer to Derek when he hung up the receiver.

In the agonizing second that followed, Derek grinned widely, then said, "We're tied."

A chorus of applause rang out in the building as staffers hugged one another. This wasn't the end of the battle by any means, but they were closer than many of them thought they ever would be.

Roush's not-so-subtle attack on Abbey had backfired after her malpractice case was dismissed. His popularity took a hit as constituents rejected him, just the way Derek predicted they would. Meanwhile, Jed positioned himself in the spotlight following the hearing and when voters abandoned Roush, they took the opportunity to learn more about him. The more they learned, the more they loved the former Dartmouth professor who most considered an underdog in September.

Jed's renewed motivation, his staff's hard work, and Roush's policy initiative against the doctors in his state had closed a 17-point gap between the two candidates. The only thing left to do was to ride the wave and push forward until election day.

TBC


	17. Chapter 17

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 17

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: The latest poll numbers revealed a tie between Elliot Roush and Jed, closing a 17-point gap with Roush in the lead; Jed refused Jenny's call a week after Leo's intervention

Summary: Jed learns something surprising about Derek; Abbey encourages Jed to make the first move towards making up with Leo; it's another morning with the Bartlets as Abbey and the girls plan out their day

* * *

As his campaigners filtered out later that night, Jed made his way through the narrow corridors of the old warehouse towards the office of his campaign director. Derek had disappeared shortly after the new poll numbers came in. His absence went unnoticed at first, but it was Jed who eventually realized he was missing.

He couldn't imagine why Derek, the man who was instrumental in overcoming the odds and matching Elliot Roush vote for vote in the latest poll, would have ducked out of the impromptu party.

"Whatever it is you're working on must be incredibly important to make you miss one of hell of a celebration." Jed leaned against the door frame when he got to Derek's office.

"Opposition research." Derek looked up from his manual typewriter.

"Don't we have a research team who does that?"

"It's for debate prep."

"Derek, take a breath. We just overcame what many people thought was an insurmountable hurdle a few weeks ago. We won this battle."

"But we haven't won the war."

"The war can wait until morning. Come on. Come have a drink with me."

"I can't."

"Sure you can. Come on."

"Jed, really, I can't." Derek pulled his paper out of the typewriter and stood to file it away in the filing cabinet.

"O'Brady's Pub is down the street," Jed said as he stepped inside the office.

"I can't have a drink with you."

"It's one drink."

"Jed, I'm an alcoholic." He waited for Jed's reply, but the seconds ticked away and it was obvious he had caught his boss off-guard and speechless. "I didn't tell you before because..."

Jed raised his hand to interject. "How long have you been sober?"

"Four years in November."

"Then it's really none of my business, is it?"

"I guess it's not." Derek returned to his seat, allowing the awkward moments that followed to pass without a word.

"Maybe I can buy you a burger instead?" Jed finally offered.

"I really should get this done."

Jed lifted the that jacket draped over his arm so he could put it on. "Some other time then."

He turned his back to Derek, walking away while mumbling 'good night' as he rounded the corner just outside the office. But before he pushed the glass double doors that would lead him out of the building, he paused and turned back around.

Derek had admitted something so personal, so unexpected, that it threw him for a loop and although he had a talent for thinking on this feet, this time, the confession had smothered his thoughts with silence.

He couldn't leave it like this. It would be wrong, he thought. So, he quickly slipped out of his jacket and headed back towards the office.

"I didn't mean to push you," he started. "About the drink, I didn't mean to push."

"You didn't."

Jed nodded. He wasn't sure what to say next, so he said the first thing that came to mind. "How?"

"What?"

Stepping inside again, Jed asked, "How did you stop drinking? Rehab? AA? What happened? If you don't mind me asking, that is."

"I don't mind. It was both. Rehab and AA. Thirty days detox. I still go to AA meetings when I need to."

"How often do you need to?"

"Used to be once a week. Since I started working for you, more like every day," Derek joked to lighten the mood.

Jed relaxed a little as he took a seat. "Yeah, it's been a rough six months, hasn't it?"

"It's been an experience, that's for sure." Derek collapsed into his own chair. "But it's why I got into this business."

"Why?"

"To make a difference. To help people. At least that's what I told myself. This job has so many stresses."

"And alcohol helped relieve the stress?"

"Nothing helped relieve the stress. Alcohol just made it more manageable. I'm a professional political operative, Jed. Do you know what we do? We're nomads. We travel to foreign parts of the country for months at a time to campaign for someone we don't even know. The only requirement is that they belong to the same party we do. You know how many times I've arrived at a place only to find out I'm working for a person incompetent of assembling my Taco Bell burrito, let alone holding a vote in the U.S. Congress?"

"Then why do you continue to do it?"

"Because I didn't get into politics for them. I got into it for people like you. Every once in a while, I find a candidate I really believe in. That's why I stay in the business."

"What convinced you about the...how did you know you had a problem with alcohol?"

"The real question is, how could I not know. On some level, I always knew. I just didn't admit it until I was ready. That's what happens. Alcoholics - at least the ones I know - know, deep down, that something isn't right. They're not oblivious. They know something's gone terribly wrong when they need a drink before they can muster up the mental fortitude to cook breakfast in the morning or to fall asleep at night or to take away the body aches that paralyze them from getting out of bed. They know they have a problem."

"I don't understand. If you knew something was wrong, then why didn't you ask for help sooner?"

"Because alcoholics are also the best liars on the planet. We're paranoid. The world is a conspiracy and everyone is out to get us. If we admit that there's a problem, then we're confirming what they've all said a thousand times over. So we don't. We keep it quiet and we pretend we haven't come unhinged."

"And you shut people out." It wasn't a question. Jed's thoughts had drifted to Leo. "You do, don't you?"

"Yeah. The years I was drinking, my goal was to keep it hidden from everyone. If someone got a little too close to the secret, I did shut them out. It's easier to continue living in denial when those people aren't around, see. Most of the time, though, I pushed them away with the hope that they would eventually be back."

"Did they come back?"

"No." Derek shook his head. "If there's one thing I've learned, it's that every relationship is based on certain boundaries. No one offers their love or their friendship unconditionally."

"That's not true."

"Yes, it is, Jed. I lost my wife, my parents, and just about every friend I ever had. The only person who knew me back then and stood by me afterwards is Christine. Everyone else was gone."

"Your parents?" Jed just couldn't fathom a parent deserting his or her child.

"We had a falling out, to say the least. I stole from them, I lied to them, and I used them to feed my addiction. By the time I cleaned up my act, my father had died of a heart attack and my mother blamed it on me."

"I'm so sorry."

"It's in the past. But like I said, if you stretch the limits to any relationship, the relationship breaks. There is no such thing as unconditional love."

A wave of sympathy washed over Jed in response to Derek's cynicism. There were boundaries in all relationships, but unconditional love wasn't a fairy tale. It existed and the fact that Derek hadn't experienced it with his loved ones made Jed even more sympathetic to the struggles he had faced alone.

* * *

Abbey snuggled up to her husband as the first ray of sunlight broke through the gauzy curtains of their bedroom the next morning. Her toes pointed, she ran her foot up and down his bare leg which, as usual, was sticking out of the covers. Jed didn't move. He didn't even flinch when he first felt it.

"You know, it might help if you talked about it," she said after a few minutes.

"Huh?" He turned his head, surprised to see her awake. "What?"

"Whatever's on your mind. It might help if you told me..."

"Why are you up?"

"Don't you think I know when you can't sleep?" she asked pointedly. "What is it?"

"I was just thinking."

"About the campaign?"

"Sort of. We've come such a long way. I actually have a shot now."

"You're the only one who thought you didn't have a shot before." She rested her hand on his chest.

"Derek worked so hard. I haven't given him nearly enough credit."

"You'll make up for it."

"Yeah," he replied unconvincingly. "You know it's Leo's birthday today?"

Abbey furrowed her brows. "That was a detour."

"I'm just saying, it's his birthday and I haven't talked to him in weeks."

"So call him." Jed didn't immediately reject the advice the way he had so many times in the recent past. "Jed, the only way this thing with Leo will blow over is if one of you stubborn jackasses makes the first move and reaches out to the other."

"I don't even think he'd want to hear from me."

"I do."

"Yeah?"

She nodded. "I really do."

Jed kissed the top of her head and held her closer. "I hope you're right."

* * *

Ellie sleepily crawled out of her bed and wandered towards the hall, smiling when she opened her door and saw the pink satin ribbon tied around the knob. She slid it off, then ran just as fast as her feet would take her down the stairs.

There was a certain tradition in the Bartlet house that began when Lizzie was little. If the girls woke up to find a pink ribbon tied to the door knob in the morning, then that day was Girls Day. It was a chance for Abbey to bond with her daughters, to take them to the movies or to the mall, to get their nails done together, or feed the ducks and the squirrels at the park, to lay out by the pool all day if it was summer or take a long drive to the beaches on the New Hampshire coast. Whatever they wanted to do, Girls Day was the day to do it.

Half the fun of the special day was in the spontaneity of it. The girls never knew when they'd find a ribbon and when they did, they never knew exactly what their day would entail. When it was just Liz, it was easy to plan an itinerary. But soon, Ellie was born and Abbey found it difficult to balance the activities to meet both girls' expectations. Once Zoey arrived, it became an even bigger challenge, so nowadays, Girls Day started with a vote at breakfast.

"Then after that, we can go to Toys R Us!" Zoey excitedly declared while using both hands to carry a can of syrup to the kitchen table.

"We went to Toys R Us last time, Zo," Ellie replied as she joined the conversation.

"So? They have new toys!"

"It's about time, sleepy head!" Abbey handed Ellie a plate so she could help set the table. "Did you wash up?"

Ellie shook her head. "Lizzie was in the bathroom blowdrying her hair."

Jed stepped just outside the kitchen to holler upstairs. "Elizabeth, we're all waiting on you!"

"I'm coming. You don't have to yell." Liz had already reached the bottom landing and was making the turn towards the kitchen.

"What in all HELL are you wearing?"

"Jed, lang..." Abbey started to remind him to watch his language. She stopped herself when Liz swaggered into the kitchen and she saw the get-up that provoked Jed's reaction.

"What? I think it looks great!" The sixteen-year-old circled around so they could get a good look at her clothes.

She wore black leather boots that came to just below her knees. A pair of black lace leggings covered the rest of her legs. That is, until they disappeared under the hem of the ultra short miniskirt she had to pull down repeatedly just in the few seconds it took her to walk to the counter and grab some silverware. A black tube top barely covered her chest and the lacy shirt she wore over it didn't hide much either.

Abbey eyed her from top to bottom. "Liz?"

"Yeah?"

"Go upstairs and put on some clothes."

"I'm wearing clothes."

"Something a little more wholesome and a little less...airy."

"Mom, come on."

"You are out of your mind if you think you're going with us dressed like that."

"Then I won't go with you. I'll go to the mall on my own."

"Let me rephrase. You're not leaving this house dressed like that."

"I'm 16 years old. I can dress how I want." She took one look at Abbey's serious face and changed her tone. "I really wanna wear this. Please? I spent a lot of money on it."

"I don't care."

"I DO care!" It was a game of wills now. "It's my outfit. I wanna wear it."

"The only place you can wear that - what we'll loosely term - 'outfit' is upstairs, in your room."

"Fine. Then I'll just stay upstairs in my room."

"Quit being stubborn."

"I'm not. I want to wear this outfit today and if it means staying in my room all day, then I will. I'll listen to tapes or something."

"Elizabeth..."

"You're giving me a choice, right? I choose to hang out by myself so I can wear what I want to wear."

"Fine." Abbey was obviously less than pleased.

Jed kept quiet for once. It wasn't often that Abbey was the one putting her foot down about Liz's clothing choices. Mother and daughter usually stuck together when it came to the outlandish trends of the early to mid-80s. This time, though, Liz had gone so far that even Abbey had to object.

The conflict between the two had momentarily silenced the conversation between Zoey and Ellie, but as soon as Jed returned to the stove to dish out the French toast he had made while everyone else continued setting the table, Zoey picked up right where they left off.

"I wanna go to Toys R Us!" she whined.

"I don't," Ellie snapped back. "I wanna go to the bookstore!"

"YOU can't buy stuff. You don't have any money!"

"ZOEY!"

"What happened to your allowance, Ellie?" Jed asked.

Ellie shrugged and said softly, "I spent it when I went out with Lizzie last weekend."

"On what?"

"My new headband and that purse I wanted. I also got some magazines and stuff."

"You had birthday money too."

"That's also gone."

"ALL OF IT? Your birthday was three weeks ago. How could you have spent it all?" It drove Jed crazy that his middle daughter wasn't a saver. "How much money do you have left?"

"Fifty-four cents," she admitted as she set out napkins.

"So what exactly are you planning to do today if your mom and sisters decide to go to the mall?"

Another shrug. "I can wait for them in the bookstore. Reading is free."

Jed realized that if any of the girls ran out of money or fell short on something they really wanted, Abbey would buy it for them, but that wasn't the point. Ellie, Zoey, and Liz had grown up knowing that part of what made Girls Day special was being able to break their own piggy banks and spend their own money.

"No one's waiting anywhere," Abbey assured them. "Whatever we do, we're all going to do it together. It's not about buying things. It's about hanging out, just the four of us. And there's no point in bickering over where we're going because we're going to vote, just like we always do."

"I vote for Toys R Us!"

"I know you do, Zoey. And Ellie's going to vote for the bookstore, but if we're going to do the little things, then we're going to have time for both." She glanced over at a quiet Liz pouring orange juice in everyone's glass. "And if Elizabeth wants to join us, I'm sure we could sneak in a visit to a couple of car dealerships as well."

That got Lizzie's attention. "SERIOUSLY? We're gonna buy a car today?"

"No, we're not going to buy a car today. However, your dad and I did promise you that if you worked and put away some money over the summer, we'd help you buy a car, so if you want, we can take a look around."

Case closed. She was ready to surrender. "All right, I'll go change. Ellie, you wanna help me find something else to wear?"

"Yeah!"

"I wanna go too!" Zoey jumped from her chair and chased her sisters.

"Ellie, come here for a sec," Jed bellowed just after the girls left.

Thinking she was in trouble for spending all her money, Ellie slowed her pace back to the kitchen. "Yeah?"

Jed pulled a roll of cash from his pocket and when his daughter approached, he handed her a couple of bills. "Spend it wisely."

"I promise! Thanks, Daddy!" She ran out faster this time, so happy that Jed and Abbey could hear her bound up the stairs.

"Don't forget to wash up!" Abbey called out to Ellie before she took a seat at the table. Grinning from ear to ear, she looked at her husband. "You're such a softy."

"Yes, I guess I am. I've been called worse in my life. And let's not pretend you didn't just bribe Lizzie by offering to take her to look at cars."

"I was planning to take her to look at cars anyway."

"Uh huh."

"I was. We did make her promise. We can't go back on it now, no matter how badly you might want to. Anyway, I would have prodded her all morning if she still refused to come. I cherish this time with the girls, especially Lizzie. She and I aren't as close as I wish we were."

"What are you talking about? She adores you."

"I just remember Girls Day when it was just me and her. We used to have so much fun. Now she treats it more like a nuisance than a good time."

"She still has fun. You know she does."

"Do you remember when she was little, she used to sneak into our room in the morning and crawl up on our bed with her hairbrush and a couple of hair ribbons?"

"How could I forget? It taught us to never sleep in the nude."

"Many mornings, she wouldn't even watch cartoons until I did her hair. She couldn't wait for me brush it for her. And I couldn't wait for it either. You know why?"

"Why?"

"Because that was our time. While I was giving her pigtails or a ponytail or whatever else she wanted, we'd talk about school and about her friends, about what was going on in HER world. I can't remember the last time she opened up to me like that. These days, I'm lucky if I get a hello when I pass her in the hall."

"She's 16, Abbey."

"I know it's perfectly normal. It doesn't mean I have to like it."

"If it makes a difference, I don't like it either."

"Jed, do you realize in a year and a half she'll be off to college?"

Jed joined her at the table. "You think if we buy her a super cool sportscar, she'll live at home and attend community college?"

Abbey laughed. "Doubtful."

"It was worth a shot. Hey, you know, with Ellie and Zoey helping out, what are the odds that Elizabeth will pick something decent to wear?"

She pushed out her chair to stand. "I'll go supervise."

"I'll come too." He started to follow.

"I don't think so." She turned him back around. "You have a phone call to make. Remember?"

"I remember." He trudged over to the phone and picked it up.

If there was any hesitation on Jed's part, it was because he feared what Leo would say. Their last encounter had ended so bitterly that he had to prepare himself for anything. Would Leo hang up the phone or would he embrace the effort that Jed was making? He didn't know, but after talking to Derek the night before, he convinced himself to take the risk because no matter what, Leo was a friend Jed wasn't willing to lose.

* * *

"Why do we have to put fruit on the tray? You know he's not going to eat it."

"We're putting it there because we're hoping he DOES eat it."

"But you know he won't."

Jenny picked up the breakfast tray and handed it to Mallory. "Mallory, you'll learn soon enough that sometimes you have to force people to do things that are for their own good, even adults."

"How are you going to force Dad to eat his fruit? You've never been able to before."

"Yeah, well, there's a first time for everything. Now come on, smarty pants, let's go."

Mallory trailed just behind her mother. When they arrived at the master bedroom, Jenny turned the knob and stayed behind, allowing Mallory first access.

"SURPRISE!" the ten-year-old shouted, rousing Leo from a restful sleep.

"Mallory, you scared me to death."

"Happy Birthday!"

"Thank you." He took the tray as well as a birthday kiss from his daughter. "All my favorites - except the fruit."

"That was Mom's idea. I told her you wouldn't eat it."

"Smart girl."

"If you don't eat all your fruit, then I'm going to take away your bacon," Jenny said as she reached for his plate.

"Don't you dare!" Leo slapped her hand with his fingertips. "I'm an adult. I can eat what I want."

"Told you, Mom."

"Why do I even bother?"

"I really don't know." Leo was secretly amused by his wife's exasperated expression.

"One of these days, Leo, you're going to have to admit that I'm right when..." The ringing phone interrupted her train of thought.

"That day will never come."

Jenny shot him a contentious glare as she answered the phone. "Hello?...Hey, Jed, how are you?"

Leo pulled on the phone cord to get Jenny's attention. Once he had it, he shook his head. Jenny lowered the receiver to quietly plead with her husband, but he ignored her.

He wasn't ready to talk to Jed. He wasn't ready to face the demons Jed, along with Jenny and Abbey, had unearthed during the intervention. He had moved past it with Jenny because he could pretend with her, and she would let him. With Jed, he had no such luxury. His oldest friend in the world knew everything there was to know about him now. He discovered his secret - the secret that he prayed no one else would ever find out - and to Leo, that was the worst thing that could have ever happened.

Just as Derek had said, sometimes, it was easier to live in denial of the obvious without people around who could see through the lies.

TBC


	18. Chapter 18

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 18

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Derek admitted to Jed that he's a recovering alcoholic, which prompted Jed to reach out to an angry Leo; Abbey planned to spend the day with her girls; Liz and Abbey argued over her outfit before leaving for Girls Day; Jed was furious when he learned that Abbey had talked to Ron Ehrlich about an endorsement on his behalf (Chapter 10)

Summary: Jed's team disagrees as they try to prepare their candidate for the debate; Liz and Abbey clash once again; Ron Ehrlich makes a surprise visit to campaign headquarters

* * *

"This disease has already claimed so many innocent lives. Until more is known about it, homosexuals should be prohibited from donating blood."

Jed gripped the sides of his podium as he eagerly awaited his turn. Larry was standing at the podium beside him and, using his best Elliot Roush impression, he was clearly irritating the former Nobel laureate.

"Dr. Bartlet?" Derek was the moderator for this mock debate.

"Finally," Jed muttered under his breath. "I'm standing here, listening to what Mr. Roush has to say and I'm reminded of an old Islamic proverb." Derek rolled his eyes. "I saw that!"

"It's a debate, Jed. Just answer the question and keep the proverbs to a minimum."

Ignoring Derek, Jed continued. "The story begins with a sinner who approached a saint in prayer."

Christine waved her hand at her boss. "All right, I'm going to have to stop you."

"Why?" Jed asked, irked by the interruption.

"You're about to imply homosexuals are sinners."

"What? I am not. That's not what I mean at all."

"I know it's not what you mean. But it's what they're going to take from it."

"There's a point to this and if you'd just let me make it..."

"Forget it," Larry chimed in. "The second you utter the word sinner in response to AIDS, you're gonna lose people and I suspect it'll be long before you ever make your point."

"He's right," Derek agreed. "I'm vetoing the story."

"Oh, for crying out loud!"

It had been a long morning of debate prep. For a week, Larry, Derek, and Christine had been quizzing Jed on virtually every topic that he would encounter during the live debate, but going into the final stretch of rehearsals, everyone had become cranky and irritable.

"Starting over," Derek announced. "Dr. Bartlet, do you agree with your opponent's stand on HIV precautions against homosexual blood donations?"

"No."

"Would you like to expand on that?"

"I would, yes, but my staff has urged me to water down my responses on the off chance that I might offend those naive voters who may not understand that every word coming out of my mouth shouldn't be twisted to represent a political or personal opinion I don't have. Therefore, let me just respond by saying, 'no, I do not agree.'"

Frustrated, Christine and Larry sighed.

"All right, everyone take five." Derek walked over to the two podiums. "Jed?"

"Yeah?"

"We've gone over the topics ad nauseum. We've practiced with softball questions, controversial questions, and questions that hit below the belt just for the sake of hitting below the belt. We've brought up your stand on crime and law enforcement, drug addiction, capital punishment, education, healthcare, abortion, and AIDS. All we're doing now is going over everything to prepare, one last time, for the unexpected, and we're 30 hours away from show time, so quit being a smartass."

"I can't help it. It's in my nature. Look, Derek, you guys have been right about a lot of things from the start and I admit I've made things harder on you from time to time, but this time, I'm not fighting on principle. This isn't a nationally televised presidential debate. It's local. The people there are going to be local. They're gonna pick their candidate based on what he says. I think they want to hear what I have to say from my heart, not from some piece of paper that's been vetted by three of my top staffers."

"Yeah, I agree. But what happens when you're up there and you tell the story of a sinner and a saint and the headlines destroy us with loose interpretations of your meaning the next morning? We can't take a risk like that this close to the election."

"I'll cut out the stories, okay?"

"Up until now, you were fine with the way we were doing things. Why are you bringing this up now?"

"Because long ago, when it turned out you were right about the fundraising and all those little things about politics that make me cringe, I decided not to question you anymore."

"I like that policy."

"But I've been mulling this over all morning and this time, I think you're wrong. You already know where I stand on all the issues, Derek. Do you honestly think that I can't articulate that to the voters without a canned response?"

"We're not asking you to memorize, Jed. All we did was formulate acceptable answers to the likely questions. That's what we do. My job is to make sure you don't get broadsided during this debate."

"And you've done that job well. Let me take it from here."

From across the room, Christine replied. "He makes a good point, Derek." She approached, avoiding the glare she knew she'd get from Derek. "Jed, Ron Ehrlich is here to see you."

"To see me? What on earth for?" Jed shuffled his papers back into his padfolio. "If I'm not back in ten minutes, come rescue me."

Derek waited until Jed closed the door behind him before he turned to face Christine. "You were the one spouting debate prep all week."

"Yes, but that was before."

"Before what?"

"Before I realized how good he is up there."

"You were the first one to call foul on the Islamic proverb."

"He still makes a good point. We know what he's going to say. Is it really necessary to beat it into his head all day to the point where he's burned out before he ever hits the stage?"

"This is how we do it."

"It's not how it has to be done, not when we have a candidate like Jed. He's fully capable of walking in there and wiping the floor with Roush, with or without 30 more hours of browbeating him on the issues. So why not just let him do it the way he wants?"

"Because this is his first real debate, Christine. This is it. If he chokes, it's over."

"He won't choke."

"How do you know that?"

"I'm as sure about that as I am that this is about control for you, Derek. You want to control what he says, how he says it, and when he says it. That's why you've been pushing him so hard."

"That's what you think? Tell me this, what is it about for you? You and I have done campaigns together in the past. I know your style better than I know my own. So why the sudden 180 on debate prep?"

"Let's just say, I'm listening to my candidate." She picked up the folders Jed had left behind and followed the same path out the door.

* * *

The late afternoon sun cast its radiant reflection onto the waters of the Merrimack River. It was chilly but not cold, usual for New Hampshire at the end of October. Some of the trees that lined the river with a canopy of leaves over the summer stood almost bear now. Their skeleton limbs shaded the coppery foliage they had lost to the ground below.

It was a beautiful day, as far as Abbey was concerned. She had taken her daughters to the toy store and the book store, followed them around a teddy bear factory where each of them created their own teddy bear, and capped the morning with a visit to a car dealership just around the corner. She then brought them to a park on the banks of the quiet river for a picnic lunch and some down time to relax and enjoy the afternoon.

While Ellie and Zoey ran around the playground, Liz and Abbey walked together on a path that snaked through the park along the water's edge.

"I really like the red one. I like the silver one too." Liz looked to her mother for advice. "Which one can I afford?"

"With your own money?"

"You and Dad are still going to match it, right?"

"Yeah."

"Then yeah, with my own money." She hoped that Abbey would tell her what she wanted to hear. "Which one can I afford?"

"The blue one."

No such luck. "That's the one I liked the least."

"It was okay."

"I guess I can't complain. I'm just grateful that you guys are helping me buy a car. Mindy's parents said no way. Until she can scrape together the money for a down payment, she's stuck driving around her father's station wagon and that's only when HE doesn't need it."

"Oh the horror!" Abbey teased as she led Liz off the path and towards the playground where she could keep a better eye on Ellie and Zoey.

"Mom, it's serious." Liz immediately headed for the swing set.

"I'm sorry, Sweetheart, but I'm just not seeing a major crisis here. So she drives around her father's car for a while. It gives her another year to save money for a car she really wants instead of just one that she can afford."

"Why do you that?"

"What?"

She sat down on one of the swings. "Pretend you're talking about Mindy when we both know you're talking about me."

"Don't read too much into what I said." Abbey glanced at her watch. "We should start packing up soon if we're going to make that movie."

"You don't think I should buy a car, do you?" Liz was having her own doubts. "Tell me the truth."

Abbey took the swing beside her and said, "I don't think you should buy that car, no. You worked two jobs this past summer, Lizzie. You didn't spend a dime for three months, you even stopped hanging out with your friends because they always wanted to do things that cost money. It's a little upsetting to hear that you did all that just to buy a car and the car you're going to end up with is a car you don't even want."

"A car's a car."

"Yes, it is. And as long as it's a safe car, whatever car you want that isn't beyond your means, I will help you buy. But I just want you to think about it because waiting to find a car that you can afford - as well as like - sounds like a good option to me."

"Then why didn't you just say that from the start?"

"Because I knew you'd come around to see it on your own and I figured it was better that way. If I told you what to do, you'd be likely to do exactly the opposite."

"Why do you say that?"

"Experience? That, and the fact that we've already had one argument today. I didn't want to have another."

"You're talking about this morning at breakfast."

"Yes, I am."

"This isn't like that. This wouldn't have been an argument."

"Everything's an argument. Sometimes I think you plan it that way."

"What do you mean?" Liz didn't know Abbey still harbored some anger over the clothing incident until that moment.

"You pranced around in that outfit this morning knowing you were going to get a rise out of your father and me."

"That outfit is trendy."

"It's tasteless. And so are some of your other clothes, which is why I think it's time I take a peek into your closet and remove anything not age appropriate."

"You can't do that. I saved my allowance for two months for just one of those outfits!"

"That's tough. If I can still return them, then you'll get your money back."

"This is so unfair. Dad's the one who always has a problem with what I wear. You defend me most of time."

"I defend you when what you're wearing is respectable, but don't think I don't know there are clothes hanging in your closet that we will only see when you're trying to make a point."

"What kind of point would I be making?"

"That you're 16 and you're old enough to do what you want. The fact of the matter is you're not and no matter how many times you try to shock us or piss us off, that isn't going to change. You got a reaction out of us this morning and I suspect we reacted exactly the way you wanted us to."

"You think I planned it that way?"

"Of course you did. It was all a game. All you wanted me was for me to tell you you could stay home and miss Girls Day so that you wouldn't feel guilty about it."

"Whatever." Liz rolled her eyes. "You accuse me of playing games, but you did the exact same thing with me."

"What?"

"If you knew that I didn't want to come today, then why did you tell me we were going to go look at cars just to get me to change my mind? Why didn't you just say that you wanted me to come?"

"What I wanted would have made any difference to you?" Abbey questioned.

"Yeah, it would have made a difference. I would have agreed to come a lot sooner if you had said that."

"I didn't want you to come along just because I wanted you here. I wanted you to want to be here and I got the distinct impression that you didn't until I mentioned that we'd be looking at cars."

"Right. So now you think that's the only reason I came." Liz stopped leisurely swaying the way she had been and pumped her legs to swing higher and faster.

"I don't know, is it?"

"Maybe it is," she grumbled as she passed her mother mid-swing.

"If I'm doubting your motivation it's because it seems the only time I hear anything out of you is when you want something."

"Because I'm just that selfish."

"No, I don't think you're selfish. Far from it. I've seen how selfless you can be with your sisters, helping Zoey at home, helping your dad with his campaign. I know you're not selfish, but I also know that the last thing you want to do these days is spend time with me."

"What, is that weird or something - for a teenager to not to want to hang out with her mother all the time? It's not like you and I are the best of friends or anything. Most of the time, we barely get along."

"That's not true."

"We never understand each other, Mom. We go through periods where everything is fine and then before things get too comfortable, we're right back where we started. You're on my case about everything."

"That's ridiculous. The things I let you get away with..."

"See? I told you."

"Told me what?"

"That we don't understand each other. I don't think you let me get away with anything. I think you're too strict and judgmental and you think I'm a spoiled brat."

"I never thought that about you! And I don't think the problem is that I'm too strict. I think it's that I haven't been strict enough."

"I'll remind you of that when you're ransacking my closet to get rid of the clothes I bought with my own money!"

Abbey ignored that particular outburst. "And when have I ever been judgmental where you're concerned?"

"Forget it."

"No, if you're going to make an accusation like that, let's talk about it."

"I HATE talking about it! It's not going to change anything. We can sit here and have one our heart-to-hearts and then a month from now, we'll be exactly where we started. That's just how we are. It's how we communicate."

"That is not the kind of relationship I have with any of you girls."

"Maybe not the kind of relationship you have with Zoey and Ellie, but you and I don't mesh like you do with them. We never have."

"That's just not true. I'll give you that we argue a lot more now than we did when you were a little girl, but that's not unusual. I went through the same thing with my mother when I was a teenager."

"It's not the same. The circumstances are different."

"How?"

"The history is different."

"What history? When you were Zoey and Ellie's age..."

Liz kicked her feet to the ground to stop her swing. "When I was Zoey's age, you were pulling all-nighters in med school and when I was Ellie's age, you were working non-stop in residency. Girls Day was something that happened once a year, if I was lucky."

Her bitterness came seeping through, nearly suffocating Abbey in a wave of guilt-ridden emotions. It was true, Liz did have a different childhood than Ellie and Zoey and Abbey had suspected before that the choices of the past weren't completely behind them.

"I tried to make up for the times I wasn't there."

Liz saw the hurt in her mother's eyes. Remorseful, she replied, "You did make up for it. I'm not mad about that. I was just trying to make a point."

"Then make it."

"It's different for us than it was with you and your mom. It's different than it is with you and Zoey and Ellie." She wrapped her arms around the chains at her elbows as she bowed her head to avoid looking at Abbey. "There were certain weeks that I barely saw you and I didn't like those weeks at all. I hated them, actually."

"I hated them too."

"That's what I thought back then, but now it doesn't make sense."

"What doesn't?"

"I thought that working so much was as awful for you as it was for us, that you only did it because being a doctor was so important."

"That's true."

"I don't believe that anymore."

"It's the truth, Elizabeth."

"If you hated it as much as I did, then you'd never want our family to go through that again."

"I don't want us to go through it again."

Liz looked up then. "Really? Then why doesn't it bother you that Dad's moving to Washington without us?"

"That's not the same thing. And for the record, I'm not looking forward to your father moving to Washington."

"Then why haven't you said anything? He'd listen to you."

Abbey couldn't believe her ears. "You've been so supportive of his campaign. You want me to now pull the rug out from under him and tell him to drop out of the race."

"That's not what I mean. I think he should run, but I said at the beginning that we should all move with him to Washington. Why did he tell me no and why didn't you try to talk to him?"

"Lizzie, it wasn't his idea for us to stay in New Hampshire. It was mine."

"Why?" Liz demanded. All this time, she thought this was how her father wanted it.

"Would you really want to leave school in the middle of the year?"

"To move to Washington? Yeah, I would have done it."

"You say that now, but you had a fit when we moved from Hanover to Manchester. I think you would have been equally upset had I come to you and said we're all moving to DC."

"You didn't even give me a chance."

"No, I didn't. That was a decision that your father and I made. He wanted us to go and I convinced him it was better for us to stay. I didn't want to uproot all our lives."

"You mean you didn't want to uproot your practice. That only proves what I said before. You might say you hate being away from us, but your job is the most important thing in the world to you."

"Don't ever say that again."

"Why?"

"Because it's a lie and you know it!" Abbey snapped, so loud that it got Ellie's attention.

The ten-year-old walked over curiously. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Sweetie. We're just talking. Do me a favor and tell Zoey that we've got five minutes before we have to leave for the movie."

"Okay."

Once she left, Abbey lowered her voice and addressed Liz again. "Your dad and I are doing the best we can to balance out our careers and our family and you know better than anyone how important family is to both of us."

"Fine. I shouldn't have said that," Liz mumbled softly.

"Congressmen come home to do district work all the time. It's not going to be like it was when I was in residency. He's going to be home more than you know."

"I saw the schedule. Derek showed it to me the night I went to the campaign to get yard signs. He'll come home for district work for only one week once a month until July. The rest of the time, he'll be in Washington. It might not be exactly like residency, but it's not going to be like how it is now either."

"No, it won't be like it is now. Things are going to change, just like they did when I started med school. But we all adjusted to that eventually."

"We did?"

Staring into Lizzie's eyes, Abbey began to doubt her last statement. If they really had adjusted the way she had hoped, there wouldn't be all this hostility ten years later.

"Yeah, we did," she replied stoically.

Liz gave her a subtle nod in response.

Though she didn't always express it, Elizabeth loved her mother with all her heart. She adored her, in fact. She was proud of Abbey's accomplishments and she took great joy in bragging to her friends that her mom was a talented surgeon who saved lives for a living.

But the tension between them was there from the time Lizzie was little. Their connection just wasn't as solid as Abbey had wanted and the stresses of every day life seemed to aggravate things more and more as the years went on. The days of lounging around like girlfriends, enjoying their own private slumber party or sharing secrets about Liz's latest crush seemed few and far between now.

Sitting on the old twin swings at the park that afternoon, the exchange between mother and daughter left them both feeling a little bit angry and a little bit hurt. In the end, though, tangled up in the words they resented at the time, was also a dose of truth and honesty, and some day soon, they were going to have to acknowledge that.

* * *

Jed hesitantly approached the lobby of campaign headquarters. He hadn't seen Ron Ehrlich since the day he and Abbey got married, but peeking out from behind the corner, he recognized him right away.

"Ron?"

"Jed." Ron extended his hand. "Nice to see you."

Jed shook his hand. "They didn't bring you back?"

"They offered, but I told them I'd rather wait here."

"What can I do for you?"

"That depends on whether or not you'll accept my endorsement...our endorsement. The Small Business Association wants to stand behind you."

Only a couple of weeks had passed since Jed initially rejected Ron's interest in an endorsement. "I told Derek to tell you..."

"Derek did tell me."

"Did my wife call you again?"

"No. This has nothing to do with Abbey."

"If I recall correctly, the SBA turned down the possibility of endorsing me long ago."

"Things have changed since then."

"What things?"

"Well, for one, Elliot Roush imploded after his campaign against Abbey went to hell. He's practically disappeared and on the few public appearances he's actually made, he's proved that he's not someone we can back."

"Are you doing this as a show of support for Abbey?"

"Like I said, this has nothing to do with Abbey. And it's not personal. I'm just here representing the SBA."

"I still don't understand why."

"We opened our ears and listened to you, and when we did, we realized that you made a lot of sense. We still have issues with your stand on the farmers and the New England Dairy Compact, but your pros outweigh your cons by a long shot."

"I'm not going to change my stand on that. And if you guys are supporting me now just because Roush messed up..."

"We listened to you because Roush messed up. We want to support you because of you. The SBA believes that you're the man to send to Washington."

He never would have thought it possible, but Ron's message meant a lot to Jed. He needed to hear that people had faith in him, not because Elliot Roush shot himself in the foot, but because he was Jed Bartlet, an honest man who cared about his state and about the constituents who would soon be casting their ballots.

With less than a week left until election day, Jed's attitude changed considerably. The sour taste of politics had started to fade because, for once, he sincerely believed that in the hands of reasonable voters, a dirty campaign wasn't going to win.

TBC


	19. Chapter 19

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 19

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Derek, Christine, and Larry prepared Jed for the debate; Ron Ehrlich pledged the New England SBA's support to Jed; Liz and Abbey argued; Elliot Roush proposed legislation that would revoke a physician's license with more than three malpractice suits (Chapter 10); the malpractice suit against Abbey was dismissed

Summary: Jed is given a tour of the debate site; the race gets uglier as Jed learns something new about Elliot Roush

* * *

The Manchester Opera House had been standing on the north side of town since the late 1800s. With its haunting teardrop crystal chandeliers and cherrywood horseshoe balcony overlooking a large grand hall that would seat 950 people, the Opera House had served as a beacon for theater, arts and entertainment, social functions, and political rallies from around the state of New Hampshire. On this night, it would host the 1984 congressional debate between Elliot Roush and Josiah Bartlet.

As he followed Derek up the wide hardwood staircase to the second floor, Jed's eyes were drawn to his surroundings. The elaborate Victorian stenciling that garnished antique mosaics up the stairwell hadn't been seen since the building had been renovated a year earlier. A fresh coat of paint now hid any hint of the former decor.

"Acoustics?" Jed asked.

"Acoustics are great now that they redid the main hall," Derek assured him as he led the way to the balcony where Christine joined them. "We've got a few floor mics and you'll have a wireless lav of course."

"Press will be up here," Christine added, walking Jed around the balcony.

"Why up here and not on the floor?"

"There will be two newspaper photographers and a pool camera on the floor. Everyone else will be up here because there isn't much room on the first floor. We don't want television cameras blocking the view of the audience, not to mention cameramen like to move around when they shoot so they can edit together whatever soundbytes they want. Plus, spin room is up here so that's where all the reporters will be and we didn't want to separate cameramen from their reporters."

"Spin room?"

"That's what we talked about this morning." Derek pulled Jed towards the spacious room behind the balcony buzzing with television crews setting up cables and remotes for their evening live shots and reporters testing IFBs and manual typewriters. "Don't let them see you."

"Why?"

"They'll ambush you for an interview and we don't do that this close to show time. You're incognito until the debate. If you see any of them wandering towards you, walk the other way, especially if you see Lydia Gyles. That woman deserves a prize for nerve."

Jed was too wrapped up in the press set-up to take note of what Derek was saying. "That's where they'll be camping out?"

"Yeah. During the debate and after the debate, we'll have experts in there, along with myself and Christine and Larry, speaking on your behalf if anyone needs clarification on something or if they need an additional quote."

"And the reporters will be watching the debate itself from in there? They don't sit in the audience?"

"No, press never sits in the audience. They'll be watching on monitors set up around the room. TV people will be calling their producers, news directors, and assignment editors throughout the show. Newspaper folks won't have as much contact with home base, but they'll be putting in some calls as well, so it'll be pretty hectic in there."

"How many news outlets are we talking about?"

Christine rattled off the organizations from memory. "Both Manchester stations - Channel 9 and Channel 7. At least one of the Boston stations is sending their Manchester bureau team. Channel 3 in Burlington is sending a White River Junction crew. The Union Leader is already here and we've got all the daily and weekly papers across New Hampshire, eastern Vermont, southern Maine, and northern Massachusetts on their way."

"Channel 9 is live?"

"Yes. They're the only ones carrying the actual debate live. The other stations will have reporters doing live cut-ins during their 6:00 and a live wrap at 11. Aside from that, they'll be gathering b-roll, soundbytes, and interviews for tonight's newscasts and tomorrow's morning shows."

Jed looked out over the balcony again. "Will they get a good shot of the stage?"

"That's what a close-up lens is for," Derek answered.

Jed was overwhelmed by it all. They had practiced for this night more than a dozen times and each time, he had envisioned the debate site. But being here and seeing it up-close and in person, it was a whole new ball game. He found himself fluttered with questions.

"And down there? Who sits down there?"

"In addition to friends and family, that's where the regular audience sits."

"Regular audience, as in voters."

"Yes, the voters." Derek saw the way Jed took it all in. Just like a pro. But behind the suave exterior, he knew it had to be a little intimidating for someone who had never done this before. "I know it's a lot to take in."

"Nah, you guys warned me. It's just...I expected a town hall, you know? Something smaller."

"Walk with me, Jed. I'm going to get your mind off all this."

"Where are we going?"

"You'll see."

* * *

The two men roamed up another flight of stairs, this one more narrow and creaky. The third floor held a darker atmosphere. The glass on the few picture box windows was streaked with grime and the flickering light of a dome lamp offered only a dim glow.

They passed a few vacant rooms. Since the doors were open to air out the smell of paint, everything they said echoed around the floor. On the left side of the hallway, Derek pointed out Jed's dressing room and immediately across from it was Elliot Roush's.

"The only people allowed up here are the candidates and senior staff," Derek told him. "No press, so you don't have to worry about walking out in your underwear."

"Yeah, because that's what I was worried about."

"Don't be a smartass. You do have to be at least a little concerned about the acoustics up here though."

"Why?"

"Listen to us. Don't you hear the echo? If you catch any cameras on this floor, call me right away. Those mics are too sensitive for my taste."

Jed trailed behind him closely until Derek stopped in front of a door labeled, on a piece of notebook paper and scotch tape, as the make-up room. "You've gotta be kidding me."

"I'm really not." Derek opened the door and gave his boss a shove inside.

Jed stepped back as Julia, the make-up artist, approached him with a cape. "This was not part of the deal."

"The camera test confirmed what Christine said this morning - we need a softer texture to your skin."

"Forget unemployment, forget AIDS, forget crime and healthcare. You know, the real issues." Jed reluctantly allowed Julia to drape him, then hopped up on the stool in front of her. "This is what months of campaigning has led to."

Julia started by pinning back the short strands of brown hair that fell over Jed's forehead. "Oh, he's got a magnificent face. Those eyes are gorgeous! Will I have time to do something about his pores?"

"There's nothing wrong with my pores," Jed grumbled.

Chuckling, Derek replied, "Julia, you've got 45 minutes to glam him up however you want. I have some calls to make."

"Derek..."

"You're in good hands, Jed." With a hardy laugh, Derek left the room.

"I'm not gonna forget this," Jed hollered to him.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Jed sat back on his stool while Julia ran a damp wash cloth over his face to remove remnants of the exfoliating mask she had used on him. She gave him a round hand mirror so he could get a better look at her work and though he would never say it openly, he really could see a difference in his skin. It was even-toned and smoother.

So that's what all that gunk did for the face, he thought. Later, he'd have to admit to Abbey that he now understood why her nighttime facial regime was important to her and vow to never tease her for her arsenal of beauty products ever again. Or maybe not.

After a single knock on the door, one of the research interns barged in. "Derek..." He took a look at Jed. "Oh, Dr. Bartlet, I'm sorry. They told me Derek was in here."

"He left a while ago," Jed replied to the frazzled young man. "Is something the matter?"

"I have to find him. Now."

"I have no idea where he is. What's going on?"

"Nothing. I mean..."

"Well something has to be going on for you to be searching for Derek."

"I...I don't know the protocol. I was told when I started to clear everything through Derek."

Jed stopped Julia from dabbing him with eye gel, then got up out off his stool to approach the intern. "I'm sorry, I'm not very good names. What's your name?"

"James, Sir."

"James, I'm sure whoever told you to clear everything through Derek did that to keep the knucklehead stuff away from me, but I'm the only one here now and I'm telling you that it's okay to tell me what's going on. What's so important?"

James wasn't an idiot. He knew what he was about to tell Jed would infuriate him and he realized that taking that chance hours before the debate wasn't the best idea. But Jed asked pointedly once more, so James took a deep breath and began.

"The guy representing Arlene Niederlander in the lawsuit against Mrs. Bartlet, he was a lawyer named Mike Moradiellos."

"Yeah?"

"He works for this firm...Lawton & Lawton. It's down in Nashua. Well, a friend of mine from college interned there this summer before starting law school. I was just trying to kill time before the debate, so I called him to check into the firm, you know, out of curiosity. It turns out, it's a husband-wife firm. The partners, Tim and Kathy Lawton have been married 20-something years."

"And?" Jed was back on his stool. Julia had returned with the eye gel and some blistering cold face cream she said would close his pores.

"Before Kathy Lawton married her husband, her last name was Roush."

"As in Elliot Roush?"

"She's his sister. And that's not all. There's this woman named Melody who works there. It's pretty well known around the office that Melody and Elliot used to have a thing about two years ago, but then Elliot's wife found out and threatened to divorce him, so Elliot called it off and in exchange for her silence, he got Melody a job as a paralegal at his sister's firm. No one outside the family knew anything about it, which is why the campaign never discovered it."

"Don't get me wrong, that sounds incredibly sleazy, but does that really have anything to do with anything?"

"Yes. According to my friend who doesn't know any of our players and has no reason to make this up, Melody has been engaged to Dr. Kyle Nelson for the past year. That was Bill Niederlander's original doctor, right? Isn't he the one who referred Niederlander to Abbey?"

"Yes. Kyle was a personal friend of Niederlanders'." Jed pushed Julia's hand away, choosing to stand and toss the cape she had wrapped around him. "You're telling me there's a direct line from Kyle Nelson to Elliot Roush and Arlene Niederlander's attorney is right in the middle of it?"

"If you take into account the affair between Roush and Melody, the chain actually begins with Roush."

"He set it all up." Julia tried to approach him again, but Jed refused her without a word. "His former mistress was dating the Niederlanders' family doctor, whom no doubt encouraged a malpractice suit, his sister's law firm handled the case, and then he came out pushing for restrictions on physicians who've been slapped by lawsuits. He set this whole thing up."

Jed was floored by the revelation. No one had caught the connection before because Mike Moradiellos's record came up clean. The research team studied previous lawsuits the firm had handled, but they didn't think to delve into Kathy Lawton's background or into the firm's hiring practices.

James watched helplessly as his boss's expression changed right before his eyes. He knew then that he had underestimated the affect this would have. Learning that Elliot Roush invented the suit against Abbey just to get an edge in the election didn't just infuriate Jed. It galvanized him; and when Jed stormed out of the make-up room that day, James guessed exactly where he was headed.

* * *

Jed lurked through the hall on the third floor, where Derek had pointed out Elliot's dressing room earlier. He caught a glimpse of Lydia Gyles poking her head around the corner and instead of honoring his staff's advice to walk the other way, he approached the young, eager reporter.

"Lydia?" Startled to have been discovered, she jumped. He gestured to her and when she began to follow him, he asked, "Are you looking for me?"

"As a matter of fact, I am."

"You want a quote?"

"Always."

"About what?"

"Whatever you're willing to give me. Kind of a pre-debate exclusive?"

"I don't have a problem with that."

"You don't?"

"No." They neared Elliot's door. "I doubt Mr. Roush does either. Go get your cameraman and get set up. As soon as Mr. Roush and I have a word, one of us will give you a quick interview."

Lydia didn't buy it at first. The man who had skirted her questions for months was now suddenly agreeing to an exclusive just before his congressional debate? She thought at first that she was being tricked, but on the sliver of hope that she was wrong, she sprinted down the stairs to retrieve her cameraman.

Jed waited until he saw her starting the journey up the stairs with her cameraman in tow. Then, he twisted the knob and let himself into Elliot's room.

"It's about time..." Elliot began, turning to find Jed instead of the person he expected.

"You son of a bitch." Jed's voice was eerily calm, but his eyes told a different tale. They exploded with fury a hundred times over in the few seconds it took him to move a little closer and close the space between him and his rival.

"What are you doing here?"

"You set up my wife."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"BULL! You 're the one who set the malpractice suit into motion. You wanted to one-up me and you used Abbey to do it. No one gets away with that."

"Jed, I doubt it's the first time you've heard this, but you're delusional." Elliot attempted to leave by walking around Jed, but Jed grabbed the back of his jacket and forcefully turned him around. "GET OFF OF ME!"

When Elliot tried to squirm out of his hold, Jed pushed him against the wall to trap him there. "We're gonna have this out right now, right here!"

"Or what?"

"Or I'll march out on stage tonight and construct a flow chart linking you to the suit against Abbey. How many people do you think are going to believe that it's a coincidence that Mike Moradiellos works for your sister's law firm?"

"It IS a coincidence." Elliot shrugged violently out of Jed's grip. "Look, your wife made a mistake and that mistake cost a patient his life."

"THAT'S CRAP! Abbey was cleared of any wrongdoing."

"Guilty people get away with things all the time."

"No one would know that better than you."

"She has to face the consequences of her actions." He walked to the other side of the room.

"You went after my wife as a way of getting to me. You targeted her in order to get support for your anti-physician legislation." Jed turned to face him. "And as if that isn't bad enough, you used Arlene Niederlander's grief for your own political gain. How do you think the voters of New Hampshire are going to respond to that?"

"You can't prove a damn thing."

"I don't have to prove it. I just have to point to the facts and reference the all-star cast."

"What facts? What cast? What the hell are you talking about?"

"Your sister, Kathy Roush Lawton. Her employee Mike Moradiellos who represented Arlene in court. Oh, and let's not forget your former mistress, Melody."

Elliot's face crumbled at that name. He knew Jed was serious. "What do you know about Melody?"

"Just that you got her a cushy little job at your sister's law firm in order to keep her from going public about your affair."

"Who told you that?" Elliot was nervous now.

"It doesn't matter who told me. What matters is that it's true." Jed watched Elliot slowly unravel as he anxiously paced the room, his breathing more labored than it had been just moments ago. "It is, isn't it?"

"Where are you getting your information?"

"It's not wrong, is it?" It wasn't really a question. When Elliot didn't respond, Jed added, "I didn't think it was."

"You've been spying on me, tapping my phone calls, following me. What, did you hire a private investigator?"

"Well, there's a confession if I ever heard one. The answer is no. I don't play like that, Elliot. But speaking of delusional..."

"None of this proves I had anything to do with the lawsuit."

"Maybe not, but when all this comes out, I think most people will realize where there's smoke, there's fire."

"I'll say it's all a big lie."

"That might work...until I bring up Melody's relationship with Dr. Kyle Nelson, who just happened to be Bill Niedlerlander's personal physician. How many people did you drag into this anyway?"

"I didn't drag anybody into anything. And I'll deny it all."

"You can deny anything you want. Once it's out there, it's out there. You really think anyone with half a brain cell can be convinced that you didn't orchestrate this whole thing?"

"It'll be my word against yours."

"Keep telling yourself that if it'll help get you through the debate tonight."

"If you bring this up during the debate, you'll be the one who looks like the fool."

Jed couldn't deny that Elliot had a point. The debate wasn't the time to air this accusation. In fact, the job of airing this accusation wasn't even his because if he dared to make such a bold claim the week before the election, it could easily blow up in his face. But he wasn't going to tell Elliot that.

"We'll see."

When Jed turned to leave, Elliot stopped him. "Jed?"

"Let me just make this clear," Jed interjected. "If you ever go after my wife or my family ever again, I promise you, you will live to rue the day."

"A threat?"

"You bet your ass. And the next time you wanna screw around, you'd be better off picking a more discreet woman. I would bet money that Melody won't have any trouble spilling your secrets to the press."

"That's never gonna happen."

Ignoring him, Jed opened the door to see Lydia standing outside. The red light on her photographer's camera was flashing brightly and had been for some time. He knew their his and Elliot's voices would echo from inside the room and he had no doubt that everything they said during that confrontation was not only overheard, but was recorded for posterity, just as he planned.

He threw his head over his shoulder and addressed Elliot for the last time. "What do you know. The press is waiting right out here and I think they're looking for you. See you on stage."

TBC


	20. Chapter 20

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 20

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Jed got a tour of the debate site and a make-up lesson as well; Jed learned that Elliot Roush anonymously organized the malpractice suit against Abbey through a trail of people that included Roush's sister and his mistress; Liz and Abbey clashed at the park (Chapter 18); the Bartlets took a family vote to support Jed when he runs for office (Chapter 39 of The Nobel Laureate)

Summary: The relationship between Abbey and Liz takes another hit as Abbey gives Liz a choice; it's debate time for Jed and Elliot

* * *

Abbey scanned a closet full of clothes, looking for just the right ensemble to make an impression at the congressional debate. One by one, she pulled out skirts, dresses, and suits and held them up to her frame for Mary's approval.

"I think so too," she said when Mary gave her the okay for a dark blue tailored St. John knit. After picking out a pair of taupe pumps from a crowd of heels on her shoe rack, she moved across the room. "So anyway, Jed and I are flying up to DC in a few weeks to find an apartment."

"If he wins?"

The question caught Abbey by surprise. She looked at her mother and with a firm tone, she replied, "He's going to win, Mom. His numbers are up. The latest poll has him two points ahead and after tonight, he's just going to widen that gap."

"I didn't mean to imply he wasn't, dear."

"I know. Sorry if that sounded sharp. I'm a little on-edge. It's his first debate tonight and I think I'm more nervous than he is."

"He'll be fine, Abigail."

"I know." It seemed like Abbey had been reminding herself of that all day.

"So what happens in January?"

"You know what happens."

"Have you thought about how it's going to be not having him around?"

"Of course I've thought about it. It's not like we just came to this decision without any discussion. We talked about it and talked about it. We know what we're getting into."

"You haven't changed your mind?"

"About living apart? No." Abbey refused to admit that she had her doubts. It was too late for doubts, she convinced herself. "Jed's going to be home practically every weekend. He'll be back doing district work more often than you know."

"And in the meantime, you'll have your hands full with the girls."

"When has she not had her hands full with the girls?" Elizabeth framed herself in the doorway of her mother's bedroom, her arms folded over her chest. She had gone unnoticed until she opened her mouth. "I have nothing to wear."

Liz was dressed in a lavender satin robe, the lace from her white slip creeping out from underneath. Her long brown hair hung loose in a ponytail and it was obvious from her tone that she was still bitter about the fact that Abbey had cleaned out her closet to remove several provocative outfits.

"You have a closet full of clothes," Abbey reminded her. "I'm sure you can find something that's appropriate for a debate."

"Not since you tore through and returned half my wardrobe."

"Liz, the clothes I returned you wouldn't be permitted to wear tonight anyway."

"That wasn't my point." The teenager joined her grandmother who was sitting on the bed. "Don't I have any rights in this house?"

"Dressing the way you want isn't a right. It's a privilege, one that, in your case, will be monitored for a while."

Mary didn't dare utter a word. She had seen minor conflicts arise between Abbey and Liz over the years and she knew from experience, she was better off letting them handle it themselves. She watched quietly as Liz rose to her feet and sauntered over to Abbey's closet.

Examining the outfits attached, Liz slid the hangers down the rod. "Meanwhile, your closet is full of short skirts and low-cut blouses."

Abbey placed her hand over Liz's to stop her. "My clothes aren't nearly as racy as the things I took out of your closet. And even if they were, I'm an adult."

"What happened to setting an example?"

"Do you really want to go there?"

"No." Liz turned then and headed back towards the bed. "I'm just saying."

"You're trying my patience is what you're doing. Why aren't you getting ready?"

"I came to tell you that Zoey wants you or Grandma to help her decide if she should wear her plain skirt or the one with the flowers on it. Ironically, my four-year-old baby sister gets to pick out her own clothes."

"That's because her clothes come from decent stores."

"So if I shopped at Tiny Tots, I could wear what I want?"

Unable to ignore the tension much longer, Mary decided to excuse herself. "I'll go help Zoey." She stood and started out the door. "Elizabeth, be nice to your mother. She's having a rough day."

Once her grandmother left the room, Liz looked to Abbey. "Can I borrow a pair of hose? Mine have a run."

"Check the drawer."

"Grandma's right, you know," she said on her way to Abbey's dresser. "Aren't you worried about how things are going to be when Dad's gone?"

"Things will be fine." Not even a hint of uncertainty in Abbey's voice. That was exactly the way she wanted it. "I'm not in residency anymore. My call nights won't be as frequent and my hours will be more flexible."

"You're still a surgeon. What happens when you have to leave at 5 a.m. for rounds at the hospital or the nights that you're called in at midnight?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

"Don't you think it might be a little late by then?"

"We'll figure all this out, Lizzie."

"When?" Liz questioned as she tore open a package of pantyhose. "The election's on Tuesday."

Abbey dropped her hands and sighed, exasperated. "Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?"

"You're making this worse than it has to be. We took a vote. You and your sisters voted to give your father your full support when he ran for office. What happened to that?"

"That was two years ago."

"So what?"

"So it wasn't right around the corner like it is now."

"I don't care," Abbey shot back with an edge to her voice. "A decision was made. It's over. There's nothing you can do to change it."

"See? Just like I said. I have no rights in this house."

"I'm asking you to put a lid on it, just for tonight."

Liz probed further, despite her mother's irritation. "The night we voted, I said that if Dad wins and has to live in Washington, we should all go. But that didn't seem to matter to anyone. Now we're stuck seeing him only every other weekend."

She was right. She had suggested a move during the family meeting in Sweden, but Abbey and Jed had already decided against it. Even back then, Abbey knew the living arrangements would be hard on the girls, not to mention her and Jed, but she sincerely believed that things would work out better this way.

"That's the way it is."

"That's the way you WANTED it to be."

Though her reasoning wasn't completely without merit, Liz's snide comeback infuriated Abbey, not just because of the lack of respect present in her eldest daughter's tone, but because her comment was wrought with the same bitterness she felt at the park the day before.

"That's right. This is the way I wanted it to be and this is the way it's going to be. Your father and I make these decisions, not you. You're allowed to disagree with us and now that you have, it's time to knock it off. From now on, I don't want to hear any more about it."

"So I'm not even allowed to tell you what I think?"

"I KNOW what you think."

"But you don't care! What's the point of even giving us a say? You and Dad are going to do what you want anyway. Why pretend it was ever up to us?"

"It WAS up to you!" Abbey shouted just as loud as Elizabeth had. "It was up to all of us. You knew the facts when you agreed to all of this. It's not like we just sprung it on you yesterday. You can't expect us to abandon our plans because you've now changed your mind for whatever reason. This family doesn't work like that."

"I never said it did!"

"Then stop sulking about it and accept that this is the way it's going to be."

"I don't have to accept it! I agreed that Dad should run for office. I never agreed that we shouldn't go with him. What if I want to live in Washington instead of New Hampshire? I'm almost 18. I think I should get to decide where I want to live!"

"You know what, Elizabeth, you're absolutely right. Go to Washington!"

Abbey regretted it as soon as she said it. She had thought about giving Liz the option of moving with Jed in hopes of getting through to her, of making her realize that this wasn't an easy decision for anyone, but she wasn't ready to commit to laying it on the line with Liz just yet, especially in this way.

She didn't want Liz to have to choose between her parents. She didn't want her to opt for one home because she felt unwelcomed at another. But something in Abbey snapped that afternoon. She felt her temper rise each time Liz pushed. Before she managed to bring herself down, she had said it, and she could tell from her daughter's reaction that she wasn't the only one a little surprised at the outburst.

"Wha...what?" Liz stammered, shocked.

"If you'd rather live with your father, then go live with him," Abbey repeated in a calmer tone.

Liz was silent for a moment, pondering what her mother had said. She had used a melodramatic approach, yes, but all she wanted was to make it known that she was unhappy that all five of them weren't moving. She never thought she'd be told that she could go on her own.

"Go to Washington?" she asked.

"Yes."

"You'd let me go?" Liz could see Abbey's frustration. Even more unsettling was that it wasn't just frustration that drove Abbey to this point. It was also anger. "Do you want me to go?"

"No, I don't." Abbey sensed her emotions might soon betray her rigid demeanor. It was hard to wait for Liz to answer when the truth was, the idea of Lizzie choosing to live with Jed over her stung her to her core. In the back of her mind, she kicked herself for losing control and blurting out the possibility.

"But you're telling me to."

"In a few months, God willing, your father will be sworn in as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Sacrifices had to be made and you knew what those sacrifices were before you voted to support him. You had a say."

"Yes, but..."

"No buts." Abbey was more subdued, more approachable than she had been moments earlier. At this point, she just wanted to reason with Liz. "The next two years are going to be difficult enough for all of us without you throwing this in my face every chance you get. If you're not going to be happy staying in New Hampshire and living with me, then you don't have to."

"I don't?" Liz couldn't believe her ears. "You're serious about this?"

Abbey sensed that Liz was about to take her up on the offer. She put on a stiff upper lip and said, "I'm giving you a choice. If you think you'll be happier in DC, you can go."

"And if I decide to stay here?"

"If you stay here, this has to end. I won't let you blame me for your dad not being around or for anything else you're still resentful about. You can't walk around here being as angry as you have been lately. You can't just lash out whenever the mood strikes you and expect that you'll be forgiven once you're over it. You're going to have to seriously change your attitude because I won't tolerate it anymore."

Even Liz could admit she had been hard on her mother and that sometimes, she could act selfish and demanding. But suddenly, to her, the choice that Abbey was giving her sounded more like an ultimatum than a proposition and she had to wonder whether or not Abbey even wanted her to stay.

Confused and upset, Liz returned the newly opened package of pantyhose and closed the dresser drawer harder than Abbey expected. She mumbled something to herself as she stomped her way out of the master bedroom and down to hall to her own.

* * *

Jed paced the floor of the first-floor holding room, glancing at his watch every few minutes. After a round of last minute drills, Christine, Larry, and Derek had left him alone for a moment of peace and quiet before the start of the debate.

A smile touched his lips when he heard the clucking of heels rounding the corner. Abbey had promised to meet him here, but because it was so close to show time, he assumed she had gone ahead and taken her seat in the audience.

"Where have you been?" he said as he swung open the door to greet her.

"Sorry. Lizzie and I...I did something I shouldn't have..."

"What? What is it? Is everything all right? Is she okay?"

One look at the pre-debate anxiety that spilled from his eyes told her that it would have to wait. "Yeah. She's fine. Everyone's fine. It's nothing like that. I'll tell you about it later."

"We have a lot to talk about later."

"What's going on?" She didn't yet know that Elliot Roush was behind her malpractice suit.

"Later, okay?"

"Okay." Abbey leaned forward, cupped the back of his neck, and brought him in for a kiss. She whispered "I love you" as she released him and rested her head against his chest.

"I love you too." As she broke the embrace, she stared at him so intently that it confused Jed for a second. "What?"

Her fingers caressed his skin and that's when he figured it out. The make-up. "Are you wearing..."

"Don't say it."

Jed tried to hush her, but Abbey couldn't resist a laugh. "Oh, the girls are gonna love this!"

"Abigail, don't you dare!"

"They didn't, by any chance, use Cover Girl on you, did they?" That was Lizzie's choice of cosmetics.

"Do you enjoy taking advantage of me when I'm weak and vulnerable?"

"Gumdrop, you've never been weak or vulnerable." She gently stroked his face. "And make-up or no make-up, you're the most handsome man I've ever known."

"There's something about the way you just said that that just...makes me weak in the knees."

"That'll come in handy later tonight."

"You're such a tease!" He gave her another kiss. "How are my pores?" he asked as he pulled away. "They were complaining about my pores."

"I can't even see them."

"That's a good thing, right?"

"Yeah, that's a good thing."

Abbey tried to swallow her laughter, but she couldn't help but let it out once again when Jed turned to the mirror, pulled on his skin, and squinted his eyes. He spun around to face her then, getting close enough to reach behind her and give her a swat on the rear for making fun of him. Just as she protested, they heard a knock at the door.

Christine peeked inside. "Jed, it's time."

Abbey kissed him once more, straightened his tie, brushed his lapel, then dashed out of the room while Jed took a deep breath and followed Christine to the wings backstage.

* * *

The main floor of the opera house was filled to capacity that evening and the spectators' thundering applause echoed through the halls of all three floors as the two candidates walked out onto the stage. In the spin room on the second floor, reporters milled around the monitors, notebooks in-hand, ready to jot down the words and phrases that marked the official start to the debate.

The Bartlet daughters, beaming with pride and clapping with enthusiasm, sat between their mother and their grandparents. Though Liz and Ellie had been to Sweden to see Jed accept his Nobel Prize, Zoey was too young to remember her father's shining moment two years earlier. From her perspective, this was the first time Jed had commanded an audience this large.

"Look at Daddy," she told Lizzie, who was sitting next to her.

"I know. It's so cool," Liz whispered back.

Jed spotted his family as he approached his podium. There they were, in the front row, just as Abbey had promised. He knew his wife and daughters wouldn't miss this for the world, but it meant more than he could ever say that his in-laws had showed up as well. He gave them all a nod of recognition, then took his place to prepare for introductions.

AIDS. That was first on the agenda. Researchers were working around the clock and the little that was known about AIDS at this time fueled the panic people had been feeling since its discovery. Many patients suffering from the disease had become ill after contaminated blood transfusions and because scientists didn't yet have the tools or the knowledge to carefully screen blood donations, the moderator, a local newscaster, asked each candidate how they felt about a proposal making its way through the political circuit that would ban those susceptible to the disease from donating blood.

Elliot answered first.

"We find ourselves in a precarious situation these days, a situation where sick people who desperately need transfusions to get better are getting much, much sicker, not from their own ailments, but from a disease passed on through our blood supply. I'm talking about our husbands and our wives, our brothers and our sisters...our children. I'm talking about innocent people, people who've done nothing wrong, who haven't committed any sin - against society or nature...or against God. We should be protecting these people and if it means not allowing those individuals in whom AIDS is most prevalent to contribute to our blood supply, then so be it."

If there was ever an opportunity for Elliot to display his bigotry, he'd take it. Jed held his contempt in-check. He remembered the first time Elliot Roush had outraged him. It was when he, Abbey, and Lizzie were living in Boston and the young state legislator across the border fought a bill that would repeal sodomy laws in the state of New Hampshire, claiming that such action would support the act of homosexual intercourse. He remembered that years later, Elliot proposed legislation to restrict the medical license of gay physicians when AIDS was first linked to the homosexual population in 1981.

He had always called them sinners, Jed recalled and tonight, as disgusting as it was, he wasn't wasting the opportunity to spew his venom and try to lure a following by scaring the public into compliance with his prejudicial views.

It was difficult not to interrupt, but Jed followed the rules of the debate and merely stood there, waiting for his rival to finish speaking so that he could start his rebuttal.

In the spin room, newspaper reporters typed furiously to quote Roush while television reporters scribbled into their notebooks. Christine and Derek held their breaths and said a silent prayer that Jed would take their advice and not begin his response with the Islamic proverb Derek had vetoed in rehearsal.

He didn't.

"Well, let's not kid ourselves," Jed began. "The group we're discussing when we say 'susceptible to AIDS' is homosexual men. That's the first group it showed up in and it's the group most people associate with it. There's no reason to beat around the bush. AIDS is new, and new often means scary. A few years ago, none of us had ever even heard of it, nor could we imagine a disease that could snatch the lives of men, women, and children without any rhyme or reason. But we're learning more about it every day and we're getting closer to understanding it. Until we do, I think we need to realize that ignorance is what breeds fear and if we have any hope of quelling that fear, it's by ending the ignorance, which also means not using this devastating disease to further personal anti-gay agendas."

Jed glared at his opponent. Elliot lowered his head and pretended to write something down in order to avoid the stare, but the television cameras zeroed in on the speechless exchange between the two men. When Jed began speaking again, Elliot appeared even more agitated.

Back in the spin room, Larry joined Christine and Derek in front of the monitor and the three watched in silence as their candidate rattled off a laundry list of reasons why homosexuals shouldn't be targeted or blamed for tainted blood donations.

"I'm married to a doctor," Jed continued. "She's been schooling me on the scientific data since AIDS was first discovered. What we know is that it's a disease that's passed on from person to person through contact with bodily fluids, such as blood transfusions...and also through sex. However, it's not a gay person's disease. If it was, then lesbians would be more at risk than heterosexuals and so far, research indicates that they're not. If we really want to single out people who are susceptible to AIDS, then we have to admit that any person - man or woman, gay or straight - who has unprotected sex is a person who is susceptible to AIDS. Now, people who have been in committed, monogamous relationships since before the start of AIDS...we can rule them out. They can donate blood just fine. But if we're going to ban homosexuals from giving blood by reasoning that they might have AIDS, then people who have casual sexual encounters should also be banned from donating. And if you think I'm talking about prostitutes, you're wrong. I'm talking about every day people who enjoy sex with multiple partners, normal people with an active sex life...even married people who may have been unfaithful to a spouse within the last couple of years."

Elliot knew that was directed at him. Just the hint of his infidelity rearing its head in such a public way made him sick to his stomach. His anxiety rising, he gripped the bottom of his podium as he waited to see if Jed would out him right then and there. Had he known Jed Bartlet better, he would have known that Jed wouldn't do that.

While sharing a stage with Elliot disgusted him, this debate was about the voters as much as it was about the candidates. Manipulating the time they would spend discussing the issues near and dear to the hearts of the constituents by turning the show into a forum for sensationalistic back-biting about subjects that had virtually no relevance to whether or not they could lead the people of their district, would have betrayed the purpose of the evening. It would have undercut the election and, by extension, sullied the electoral process.

So, Jed went on without a word against Elliot. His innuendo was enough to rattle his opponent and that was his goal, after all. Once that was done, he continued his answer.

"This opens up a whole new can of worms. Should we force adulterers to sign forms and register with the state so that their blood is never used to save a life, all in the name of public safety? Nearly 4,000 Americans have died from AIDS thus far and only a small percentage of those people have been gay. It's out there, infecting people without a specific target. Placing restrictions on blood donations within the gay community alone is an act of bigotry, disguised to fool people into thinking they'll be safe when, in fact, they're at risk from anyone who's had intimate contact with someone who has AIDS. So, unless we're ready to start forcing scarlet letters on the public at large to keep them from donating blood as well, I think our efforts are better spent on allocating funds so that researchers can find ways to adequately screen blood banks and safely dispose of a compromised supply. And that's precisely what I plan to fight for in Congress."

The statement drew applause from the audience. In the hectic spin room, where prominent surrogates from both campaigns mingled with the press to offer supplemental quotes, Derek, Christine, and Larry each pulled up a chair and made themselves comfortable in front of the monitors.

TBC


	21. Chapter 21

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 21

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: During a heated argument, Abbey told Liz she could either rein in her attitude or move to Washington with Jed, if that's what she wanted; Jed and Elliot took part in their first (and last) congressional debate

Summary: Jed and Abbey celebrate at a private post-debate victory party; Jed has a word with Elizabeth

AN: Two chapters this week because I'll be out of town over the weekend and I may not get a chance to post again until late next week or early the week after

Rating: NC-17

* * *

"Did you see all those wrinkles? The ugliness in his soul is starting to show on his face."

In the master bedroom, Jed kicked off his shoes and shed his pants down to his boxers as he started in on Elliot Roush's performance during the debate. It had been lackluster at best, a testament to his nerves getting the better of him from the second he thought Jed was going to disclose his extramarital affair right there in the opera house.

"Christine said she'd be surprised if he doesn't lose a few endorsements before Tuesday, especially after Lydia Gyles airs what she overheard about his involvement in your lawsuit. I had no idea they could do that...revoke endorsements. Did you know that?" He neared the bathroom where Abbey was changing. "Abbey?"

"No, I didn't."

"Are you okay?"

"I told you, I'm great."

"Yeah, but I don't believe you." She had taken the news of Roush spearheading her malpractice suit well. Too well, Jed thought. "Come on out and talk to me."

"I'll be out in a minute."

"It wasn't about you, you know. He was after me. You were just a convenient pawn."

"I know."

"And it had nothing to do with your skills as a doctor."

"Jed, I know. I'm fine. Really."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I mean, it was a shock when you told me and I can't say that my first thought wasn't, 'Oh God, this is really what politics is all about,' but I'm dealing with it now. What matters is that I won the case and it's over."

"If that's true, then why are you still in there?"

"Because..." She opened the door and stood before him in a black lace-trimmed silk robe that came to the top of her thighs and just barely covered her rear. "I wasn't ready yet."

Jed watched his wife sashay seductively towards the twin crystal flutes he brought up to their room alongside a bottle of chilled champagne still in its sterling silver bucket. Abbey popped the cork and poured them each a glass.

"You're overdressed," he whispered as he took his glass. Her gorgeous legs looked so smooth and inviting peeking out from under the robe that he just had to restrain himself from jumping her right then and there.

"I was about to say the same to you." Abbey took a few sips of her champagne, waited until Jed did the same, then returned both glasses to the tray.

She wiggled her hips all the way back over to him, then pressed her weight into him, kissing him as she slipped her hands into the elastic of his boxers and undressed him from the waist down. With calculated steps, she then backed him up towards the bed until his knees hit the mattress. He sat on the edge, and as she sunk down to her knees in between his legs, he gathered a fistful of sheets in anticipation.

Abbey teased him with her mouth. She ran her tongue down his shaft, drowning him in long, hard strokes of his delicate skin. He inhaled deeply, holding it until he felt her lingual manipulation in a new place. This time, it was around his tip. She flicked it a few times, just hard enough to provoke another breath before moving on to the underside.

Her eyes found his as she looked up to see his face. He was so handsome, as handsome as their wedding night, she thought. Even more so, if it was possible. His expressive baby blues captivated her thoughts for a few minutes, and then, without delay, she took him into her mouth, fully encapsulated him as if she couldn't get enough. Jed closed his eyes while his fingers curled around Abbey's silky nest of hair. Gentle yet firm, her lips glided up and down his masculine appendage, sucking him erotically at times, just the way he liked it.

Her hands, meanwhile, found another area of enjoyment just south of his penis. She massaged him there, hard yet tender, with the finesse of an experienced lover and the enthusiasm of an explorer about to discover every inch of her partner's anatomy for the very first time.

She predicted the blood rushing to his penis seconds before it did. She could feel the sensual pleasure she was bringing him before the evidence swelled in her mouth. She knew exactly how he responded to sex and how long it would take to lead him to the brink. Sometimes, she knew better than he did.

He was almost there, he realized, but he wanted more. He wanted her. He wanted to be inside of her, to feel her feminine walls squeezing him towards orgasm. He wanted to stare into her eyes and hold her and kiss her as she succumbed to the same earth-shattering spasms he was about to experience.

Abbey allowed him to slip from her mouth and in an act that piqued his desire even more, she rose to her feet and pulled on the belt that kept her robe wrapped around her petite frame. It fell from her shoulders effortlessly and underneath, she stood completely naked.

Even after all these years, Jed still couldn't get enough of his wife's nude body. From the taut muscles of her calves to her thin, rock solid thighs and toned belly, from her buxom breasts to her attractive upper arms that were sculpted to perfection, from her lovely dark auburn locks that teased her bare shoulders, to her eyes, a sparkling sea of emerald jewels, and that smile that could go from serious and professional to flirtatious and playful in just a matter of seconds, every single part of her tempted him.

He held out his hand to her. Abbey welcomed the gesture, moving forward to straddle his thighs. She held onto his shoulders so could ease herself down and when he slid inside her, their eyes locked once again.

Jed swept a tendril of hair out of her face, then caressed her cheek as his lips made contact with hers. He kissed her over and over again, each kiss just a little harder than the last, until he moved down to her chin and over the soft groove of her neck. She threw her head back to give him better access.

Needing to rid him of the rest of his clothes, Abbey tucked her hands under Jed's shirt and splayed her fingers across his chest. She took the time to admire his rippling muscles and the feel of his hot, pulsating flesh before she yanked the material off so thoughtlessly that two of his buttons flew off his cuff and landed on the floor.

After a series of throaty moans, she let out a gasp just as Jed reached her breasts. His mouth lavished one mound, dipped into the valley, then turned its attention to the other. His hands raced up and down her sexy, curvaceous back and eventually, his fingers dug into her rear, pushing her into him so hard that he grunted in frustration when he found he was unable to go further in this position.

He grabbed her tight around the waist and allowed himself to fall backwards, her body right on top of his. They tumbled between the sheets a couple of times, still romantically locked at the groin, and when they stopped, Jed took the lead. He ravaged Abbey with his mouth while she squirmed excitedly beneath him. Her hands lay open on either side of her head, closing around his the second their palms linked as he began a rhythm of excruciatingly slow thrusts.

Again and again, he moved inside of her, enjoying every moment of her stretching around him. It was a familiar dance for husband and wife. They knew every intimate detail about one another. Abbey always knew how Jed would feel before he probed for entry. Jed always knew that Abbey's eyes would light with fire the second she felt him inside and he adored that look and all the implications that came with it because it wasn't about the splendid gratification she knew was coming. It was about the emotional intimacy she'd only ever get from him - her lover, her husband, and her best friend.

Beginning with slower thrusts mixed with a melody of sensual strokes and endless gazes into the depths of each others eyes, made their lovemaking more than just an act of sex. It was a way for them to express their affection, a way to profess their love by sharing the most private parts of themselves with each other before surrendering their willpower on the journey towards physical satisfaction.

Abbey crossed her ankles around his back and pressed down with her heels, relishing every magnificent inch of him as she forced him even deeper inside until Jed stopped suddenly. He pulled out, placed his hands behind her knees to push her legs even higher than they were, then entered her once again. This time, he teased the spot that would soon drive her out of her mind.

Abbey pulled her hips up off the bed. Her legs were still wrapped around him as she arched her back far enough to allow him to slip his hands underneath while he buried himself to the hilt. He loved holding her up to him like this. Feeling the heat that radiated off her body, his arms pushed up on her back until her breasts reached his mouth.

She wriggled in his hold. From her neck to her thighs, every single organ was on fire and she struggled for a release she knew would take her breath away and leave her drained from the pleasure.

He pulled out half-way, then slammed into her again and again. Over and over, he hit that magical spot that always made her scream out his name. Soon, her entire body fell hostage to a wave of paralyzing sensations and just when her nails pierced the skin on his back and she tightened around his shaft, he sped up his pace to join her.

Hand-in-hand, they reached a mind-numbing climax together and remained fully joined when it was over while a series of aftershocks took over their bodies. Finally, Jed placed a single kiss on her lips, then slipped out and collapsed to her side, exhausted.

Unwilling to let go of the warmth and security she always felt while enveloped in his arms, Abbey snuggled up to him. There was something about a Jed Bartlet embrace that she couldn't explain, something that empowered her with an even greater love for her husband, something that made her crumble in his hands, vulnerable to his touch and weak to his hold.

As she laid there in bed, she said a prayer that the bond between them would always remain as strong as it was that night and that their love would only grow as they prepared for the next phase of their lives. And afterwards, she let the sound of his heartbeat lull her to sleep.

* * *

The next morning, while Abbey was in the shower, Jed swaggered down the hall to Lizzie's room. Abbey had told him about the fight they had before the debate. The end result of that fight left Jed just as unhappy as Abbey, so he decided he would intervene before the situation between mother and daughter got any worse than it was.

He knocked lightly with the back of his knuckles. "Liz?"

"Come in, Dad." Lizzie stood in front of her mirror. She wore a pair of tight black pants with an oversized purple sweater that hung just above her knees and fell off her shoulder on one side. She was adjusting a thick black belt around her waist.

"I like that outfit. It looks nice."

"Thanks."

Jed walked into the room. "I hear you and Mom got into it again yesterday."

"So what else is new?"

"What's going on?"

"Ask Mom."

"I already did and now I'm asking you."

"Why? You're just gonna take her side."

"Damn right I will if this is the attitude you used with her. If I were you, I'd be grateful that I'm listening to your side with an open mind after what she told me." He sat down on her bed. "What happened?"

"You really wanna know? Fine." Liz stopped fidgeting with her belt and let out an exasperated sigh. "She's always mad at me. She's always on my case about something. She tries to rule my life."

"And you just have it so rough." Jed never had much patience for melodrama. "Cue the lights, the camera, and the production party of one."

"Don't make fun of me," she said, hurt that he made light of her feelings.

Seeing her face, Jed realized that Lizzie was just as upset as Abbey. He felt bad about his flippant comment as this was far too sensitive a subject not to take her seriously. He knew there were two ways to handle Liz when she was in this kind of mood - he could simply lay it on the line and tell her that her attitude wouldn't be tolerated, or he could hear her out and let her vent, then help her see for herself what she had to do to make things right with Abbey.

He chose the latter. "All right. I won't. I'm being serious now. I want to talk about this."

"We just don't get along, Dad. We never have."

"That's not true."

"Dad." Liz looked into her mirror and tore a brush through her hair so hard that she ripped the tangles apart.

"Elizabeth, it's not true." Jed stood up. "See, I grew up with a parent I never got along with. I know what that's like and that's nowhere close to the relationship you have with your mother. You might fight sometimes, but it's not unnatural or abnormal. Most of the time, you light up when she walks into the room. So what's gotten into you lately? Why are you so angry at her?"

"What makes you so sure I'm the one who's angry?"

"Come on. If we're going to talk about this, then we're going to be honest. The way I understand it, all this started when she made a comment about the car you guys were looking at the other day."

"It's not about the car. It was never about the car." Liz picked up her backpack and began gathering her books.

"Of course it's not." Jed handed her her Biology textbook. "It's about me. You're pissed at me."

"No, I'm not," she said, dropping the backpack on the bed. "Why would I be pissed at you? You didn't do anything."

"Except that I might win my election."

"I WANT you to win. I've been trying to help you win."

"I know that, but that doesn't mean you're entirely sold on what happens come January." He stayed glued to his spot and watched as she headed to her desk to retrieve a notebook. "It's not your mom's fault that the family isn't moving, Lizzie. That's just the way it has to be."

"Why?" Liz was turned away from him, her fingers fumbling with the edges of random pieces of paper scribbled with Trig homework.

"Because we have a life here in New Hampshire. If I move all of you to DC, what happens when I come home to do work in the district? It might not be as often as you think, but it's going to seem like forever in the summer. I can't stay in Washington while Congress is in recess. I have to come here and meet with constituents, work out of my home office, see, with my own eyes, what's going on in Manchester so that I can appropriately represent these people in DC. If you guys moved there, we'd still be apart half the year. Moving isn't a solution."

"Well, it doesn't really matter because I'm not mad at you."

"Then who or what are you mad about?"

She finally turned to face him. "Can't I just be mad without dissecting the reason with you?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because it doesn't work like that," Jed replied as he walked behind her, gripped her shoulders, directed her towards her bed, and sat her down. He pulled up her desk chair for himself. "Believe me, I used to be just like you when something was bothering me, and I still am to some extent, but I've been through this enough with your mom to know that she's right. If you keep it inside, it'll just fester until it eats you up. Talking about things will help."

"Yeah, right."

"Give me a chance. I may know what you're going through, you know."

"How could you? You're not a teenager."

"Do you think I was born at age 35?"

"Dad, you're 38."

Jed slapped her knee. "Hey, googy, quit being a smartass."

"Googy? Don't ever call me that again." His response drew a giggle out of her.

"The point is, Lizzie, you're not in uncharted territory here. We've all been through it." It was about more than just the fight with Abbey now. Jed was sincerely bothered by whatever it was that had Lizzie so irritable. "What's been going on that's got you so upset?"

"It's just stupid stuff."

"Like what?"

"Fine." Her head fell back as she rolled her eyes. "My French teacher hates me. Every time I raise my hand, she pretends not to see me even though she's looking right at me. This girl I beat out for cheerleading captain started this stupid rumor about me kissing this guy I don't even know and now Scott, the boy I've been flirting with at lunch, won't even talk to me. He accused me of leading him on. I broke my plans with Mindy so many times in the past few weeks so I could canvass because the campaign was short on volunteers, that she's mad at me. And my Biology class totally sucks."

"Well, first of all, I'm sure your French teacher doesn't hate you, the girl who started that rumor is obviously pissed that you're a better cheerleader than she is, and if Scott is the kind of person to believe rumors over your word, then he's not worth your time. As for Mindy, you should make it up to her this weekend. The campaign can survive without you for one night, trust me. And don't tell your mother, but I also thought Biology sucked. Just learn what they teach you and ace your exams. Everything else will fall into place."

"It's not as easy as that."

"Of course it is. These problems are just blips on the radar. What else is going on?"

"Aside from the fact that my father is moving out of the house in a few months, isn't that enough?"

Jed shrugged. "I don't know. I kept quiet because I was hoping that somewhere down the line, you were going to mention what it is your mother did to you. It seems she's the only one who hasn't done anything to piss you off and yet, she's the one you're blaming for everything."

"She returned my clothes."

"Lizzie, come on. Enough is enough about those clothes. Even you didn't like them. You wore them to get a rise out of us, admit it."

"I liked some of them."

"You wanted to pick a fight with me. You knew that wearing those clothes was the way to do it because I've been on your back about the way you dress since the beginning of the school year, so you wore that outfit to piss me off."

"That isn't true."

"Elizabeth..."

"Dad, no matter how much you want to believe you do, you don't know everything!"

"You said yourself one of the things that's bothering you is that I'm moving out of the house in a few months."

"So?"

"So I find it hard to believe that you didn't slip into that disgraceful ensemble the other day to try to get me to lose my temper."

"Why would I do that?"

"Because it's easier to express your anger about me leaving during a fight than it is when everything is going smoothly."

"I'm NOT angry that you're leaving!"

Liz continued to shake her head, but Jed ignored her protest. "You tried to provoke a fight, but then your mom got into it instead of me, so you took that opportunity to unleash your frustration out on her." She didn't respond. "Well?"

"Is there even a point in me saying anything? You're going to believe what you want." Jed gave her a stern glare, one that convinced her that her denials didn't fool him. "All right, yes. I'm just a teensy weensy bit unhappy that things are changing. I'm not mad at you. I don't know how many times I can say that."

"All right, then explain what unhappy means."

"I wanted you to run and I still do, but it just scares me."

"What does?"

"You leaving us. Ellie and Zoey haven't said anything, but they're really gonna miss you. You can't help them with homework or tell them stories like you used to tell me when we'd walk out to that old pedestrian bridge in Boston and have ice cream every Friday night."

Jed smiled fondly at the memory. Liz was only five years old at the time. The fact that she not only remembered those nights, but looked back on them affectionately meant a lot to him.

"Hoodies," he said. "Chocolate hoodies in those round, plastic containers with the wooden spoons. I never let you eat it until we reached the bridge. You always whined at first, but you'd come around. Then you'd sit down, dangle your feet over the edge of the bridge, look out at the water, and listen to whatever I had to say."

"Ellie and Zoey won't get to do that with you. And what about Mom? She needs you here too. You guys have a thing, you know? Every night, you read together or watch TV together. You go for walks in the orchard. Who's going to do that with her if you're not here? And you too. I mean, who's going to look over your shoulder when you cook breakfast in the morning or dinner at night? Without Mom around, you'll probably have cheeseburgers and fries three times a day."

"That's not so bad."

"It's unhealthy. That's why you need Mom there."

"Lizzie, I think you need to stop worrying about what everyone else is going to miss out on and tell me why it is you're afraid of me moving to Washington."

"It's just...you won't be around. I kinda like it when you tease me or when we have one of our fights that aren't really fights where you tell me I dress funny and where you make fun of the guys I like. You can't do that from Washington."

"Why can't I?"

"How can you? You'll be 500 miles away," she said. Jed didn't have a comeback for that one. "It won't be the same, Dad. Nothing will be the same."

"Not exactly the same, but you're picturing some kind of catastrophic change. That's not gonna happen."

"Mindy's parents are divorced. She only sees her dad once a month and things are so different now, not just for her, but for the whole family."

"We're not Mindy's family. We're going to be just fine."

"How do you know?"

"Because I know us. Sweetheart, your mother and I love each other and we love you three girls more than anything in this whole world. We're not going to let a little distance ruin our family. I would quit my job long before that happened and so would your mother."

"Mom's job's too important to her."

"No it isn't. Look at me." Jed lifted her chin to force her to look at him. "It isn't. She doesn't deserve that. I know she works a lot, but her family always comes first and she's proved that more times than I can count."

"You used to give her a hard time when she was in residency."

"I was wrong. If I could take back those silly little arguments we had about her work hours, I would, in a second. And you should too. She doesn't deserve to have you throwing that up in her face all the time."

"I know," she admitted softly, finally acknowledging the fact that she had been unfair to Abbey.

"She's done nothing but love you since the day you were conceived. She's cried every tear right along with you, gone through every heartache, every illness. When you were a baby and you were sick, she used to sleep on the floor next to your crib so she could keep her eye on you all night long. Even as you got older, if you so much as had a chill, she'd camp out in your room because she was worried that she wouldn't be able to hear you if you needed her."

"She still does that sometimes."

"I know she does. You're quick to point out all the times she wasn't there for this or for that, but what about all the times she was? She never missed one of your ballet recitals, she never missed a soccer game or a gymnastics meet. When she was in med school, she never left the house in the morning until after she woke you up so that she could brush your hair because she was the only one you wanted to brush it. She'd come home late from the hospital during residency, exhausted after a 36-hour shift and instead of sleeping, she'd stay up to help you with a report for school or some project you had left until the last minute. And birthdays and Halloween...she went all out for those. She even failed a physiology exam her first year in med school because the exam was the day after your birthday and she had spent all week preparing for this celebration you probably don't even remember."

Liz listened to her father, curious and interested. "Was that the year she staged a carnival up in Vermont?"

"At your great-grandpa's farm in Ryegate. She invited all your friends and their parents up there. You remember?"

"We had a magician, right?"

"We had a lot more than that. We had carnival games and moonwalks and water slides, even though your mom said it was too cold to get wet. We had a HUGE princess castle, trimmed in pink and purple, your favorite colors, and that large pool of balls you jump into...what's that called?"

"I guess I don't always think about those things."

"That's because it's easy to focus on the negative."

"Did you come in here just to tell me I owe her an apology?" It was an unnecessary question. Liz already knew the answer.

"The last thing I want is for you to apologize to her just because I told you to. She's been an incredible mom, Lizzie. If you're going to apologize, that should be why. You were pissed about me leaving...sorry, unhappy about me leaving and you took it out on her. You shouldn't have done that. If you continue to take people for granted, you'll turn around one day and they won't be there anymore."

Though both father and daughter knew Abbey's love was unconditional and that regardless of how hard Liz pushed, that love would be a constant in her life, it didn't stop Jed's words from sinking in.

"She told me I could go to DC with you."

"Is that what you want to do?" Liz shrugged. "I'm okay with whatever you decide, so don't worry about that. I'm asking you to be honest with me. Is that what you want?"

"No. I don't wanna leave everyone here. I'd kinda miss Zoey and Ellie pestering me all the time. And Mom might need me to help her take care of them, especially since you won't be here."

"That's true, as long as you quit blaming her."

"I know I treated her badly."

"You can make up for it."

"Even if I do, I don't think she wants me to stay here, not after our fight."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that."

"I know she's not like disowning me or anything, but she's really mad. I don't think she wants to deal with me anymore. And I don't know that I want to stay. If I do, we'll just fight over something else just as stupid in a few weeks. And then what?"

"You control your temper and you talk it through. You're going to have to learn to do that and not just with your family, but in general. I know you and your mom clash from time to time, but as long as you realize that you love one another, you can work through any problems you have."

"Dad, you're always way too optimistic."

"There's no such thing, little girl. I know you can do this as long as you're willing to try. You don't like fighting with her, do you?"

"I hate it."

"So does she."

"I don't know what I wanna do."

"Of course you do." Jed zipped up her backpack and handed it to her. "Now you just have to do it," he said just before he turned from her to head out of the room. "Breakfast in 10 minutes."

TBC


	22. Chapter 22

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 22

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Jed and Abbey celebrated a private post-debate victory party; Jed talked to Liz about her disagreement with Abbey; Abbey told Liz she could move to Washington with Jed (Chapter 20)

Summary: It's Election Day 1984; Liz and Abbey clear the air; Jed's staff prepares for their final day of campaigning

* * *

It was barely 5 a.m. when Abbey's hand fell onto the empty pillow beside her. It woke her immediately. She sat up in bed and looked around the room. With a quick glance towards the bathroom, she flipped the covers, turned on the light, and wrapped herself up in the red silk robe she had draped over a chair the night before.

"Jed?" She called for him as she started down the stairs and then again as she rounded the corner towards the kitchen. "Jed?"

Her eyes hit the front door next. She peeked through the window first and when she saw him outside, she headed to the closet to retrieve her jacket. Unlike her husband, she was weary of the November cold.

"Hey, what are you doing up?" he asked as she opened the door.

"I could ask you the same thing."

He was sitting comfortably on the stained oak couples swing on the porch, his feet tapping the ground in tempo. "I couldn't sleep."

"How long have you been out here?" Abbey sat down next to him.

"Not long." Jed crushed his cigarette into an ashtray, then moved to one side to leave her plenty of room. "Polls open in two hours."

"Nervous?"

"No," he lied. "You?"

"No," she grinned.

He didn't have to tell her about the anxiety coursing through his veins, the sheer horror that gripped every inch of him every time he imagined himself the winner of this race. He was riddled with doubts and plagued by the uncertainty of whether or not he really was qualified to do the job.

Who the hell was he, he thought, to represent the people of New Hampshire's first congressional district? Did he really know more than the average man? Was he really smarter, more capable of this than Elliot Roush? Was it really in the best interest of his neighbors to elect him to be their spokesperson, to be their voice and to make daily decisions that would affect them for the rest of their lives?

He didn't have to tell Abbey any of that because she already knew. She was sitting silently beside him and as a show of support, she took his hand, squeezed it firmly, and gave him a look that conveyed her pride and undying loyalty. He was the right man for the job. She knew it even if he didn't.

"I wanted to run something by you," he said. "What do you think of me asking Christine to join me in Washington? She could stay on as Communications Director."

"Would she do it? She's a professional operative. You said yourself they're like gypsies. They like going from one campaign to another."

"That's true for Derek and Larry, but Christine's different. She's been talking to me a lot about wanting to settle down some place, find a job that actually pays a yearly salary instead of monthly compensation. I think she'd be happy in DC."

"In that case, I think it's a good idea. I like the thought of someone you know - someone who knows you - being there with you."

"To keep me in line?"

"To have your back."

Abbey laid her head on his shoulder as her arm slipped under his and her hand looped around his elbow. The door suddenly opened, startling both husband and wife.

"Hi," Liz greeted them. Already dressed and carrying her backpack, she started towards the railing in front of her parents.

"It's 5:00 in the morning," Abbey informed her as if she didn't already know. "What are you doing?"

"It's almost 5:30. We're meeting at headquarters at six."

"What on earth for?"

"Staff meeting. My group's on visibility from seven to nine, then canvassing for two hours, visibility from eleven to one, more canvassing, then we're hitting the polls."

"Visibility?" Abbey looked to Jed.

"Signs during morning rush-hour," he told her. "Liz, you're off school today. You can relax, sleep in, read, watch TV. Why did you agree to work?"

"Dad, I've been volunteering there for two months. How anticlimactic would it be to take election day off?"

It impressed Jed how much his eldest daughter enjoyed politics. At first, he thought it was because of him that she agreed to help out with his campaign, but eventually, he realized that Elizabeth really knew the issues. In fact, she knew them so well, she was now schooling the other volunteers on most of them.

"I don't know. How 'anticlimactic' would it be?" he replied, using his best teen outrage imitation, wide eyes and all. "Would it be the worst thing that ever happened in the history of the world?"

"Leave me alone." Liz gave him a good-natured smack to his arm.

"Let me change and get ready. I'm going down there anyway. I'll give you a lift."

"Okay, but hurry. Derek wants all the volunteers and staffers there by 6:00 sharp."

"Give me a few minutes," he mumbled as he walked inside.

Liz stared at Abbey sitting on the swing her father had just left. She hadn't yet answered her mother's question about moving to Washington. She hadn't even addressed the subject since the morning after the debate when she discussed it with Jed. She knew what she wanted. She always had known. But initiating the conversation wasn't easy.

"Mom, I was thinking," she started. "When Dad leaves, you might need me to help out with Ellie and Zoey. I mean, they really will be a lot for you to handle on your own."

"I'll manage," Abbey said coolly. The last thing she wanted was for Liz to stay in New Hampshire out of a sense of obligation.

With no other choice but to be completely honest, Liz changed her tactic. "Well...I'd kind of like to stay. I like it here. I like my school and my friends. I'd miss everyone. I'd even miss my sisters."

Abbey was listening, but nothing Liz said provoked a change in her expression. "Yeah?"

"Yeah. And..." Liz paused, then muttered quietly, "I'd miss you."

"A few days ago, it sounded like you couldn't wait to get away from me."

"I was wrong. I don't want to go. I really wanna stay...if that's okay?"

This was the Liz Abbey wished she got to see all the time. She wasn't angry or rebellious. She was honest and vulnerable. This was the real Liz. "Of course it's okay. This is your home, Lizzie. Forever."

Liz moved closer to the swing, taking the seat beside Abbey. "About all the stuff I said - I take it back. I'm okay with Dad moving."

"What about the other things?" Abbey's eyes met her daughter's. Though Liz didn't give her a verbal reply, she knew that Liz understood exactly what she was talking about. "What about the things you said about me...about my career?"

Liz shrugged. "I don't know why I brought that up."

"I don't either. You and I went through this a couple of years ago when you were mad at me because of my hours at the hospital. I thought we worked that out. I thought it was over. What happened?"

"I don't know." Liz heard her mother's sigh before she even finished her statement.

"Liz." Abbey shook her head as she breathed her daughter's name.

"I know you hate that answer, but it's the only one I can give you this time. I don't know what happened. It's just that this whole time, I thought it was Dad's decision for us to stay in New Hampshire and then when I found out it was you, it pissed me off. I thought you were against moving just because you didn't want to leave your practice."

"And now?"

"Now I know that isn't true. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."

"No, you shouldn't have. Look, I may not have been everything you always wanted in a mother, but I've tried awfully hard to give you the best life possible, Elizabeth. The choices I make for you and for your sisters, aren't because I'm trying to be selfish or because I'm putting my job before you. The choices I make are because I sincerely believe it's for your own good and for the good of this family."

"Okay, I got it."

"I'm not sure you do," Abbey said plainly. "I've made some mistakes, I know that. You were my first-born and there was a bit of learning curve, so no, I wasn't a perfect mother. But I don't think I was awful either."

"You weren't. You were never awful."

"Then why is it that every time I have a fight with you, I feel like I was? Believe it or not, being your mom isn't the easiest thing I've ever done."

"I know. I'm sorry."

If Abbey hadn't detected her daughter's remorse before then, the broken response she just received was sure to give it away. She pulled the sixteen-year-old's hair back off the side of her face, changed her tone, and said, "Not that I'd trade it for anything in the world."

"You don't have to say that."

"It's true. I just wish I knew what to say to you. Sometimes, I'm at a total loss."

"So am I," Liz agreed. "Can I ask you something?"

"What?"

"Do you regret having me when you did?"

"Never." The response was so quick, it was obvious that Abbey didn't even have to think about it. "You came into my life at the perfect time."

With furrowed brows, Liz asked curiously, "I did?"

"You were born less than a year after your dad and I got married. We were in another country, far away from family and friends. I was just learning how to be a wife and on top of that, I had to learn how to be a mother too. It was so overwhelming at first, I thought I was going to lose my mind. I was homesick. I wanted to move back to New England. I wanted to go to med school. But every time I looked at you, I realized how lucky I was that I had a precious baby girl who was all mine. I loved staying home with you, I loved taking care of you, playing with you. I will always cherish that one-on-one time we had back then." Liz lowered her head. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's just...I don't remember it very much."

Abbey assumed Liz was too young for the memories of the early years of her life to have made an impact, but it still made her sad that she could never recreate that special time. "I know you don't."

"I wish I did. I always figured having a baby back then was a burden for you because you wanted to go to med school so badly."

"That's a perfect example of what I was talking about a few minutes ago. I don't know how to respond to you when you say things like that. Why would you ever think that you were a burden? What have I ever done to give you that impression?"

Liz shrugged. "Nothing."

"Assumptions like that one are dangerous, Lizzie. That's what leads to these kinds of conflicts. For the record, you were never a burden. I didn't postpone med school because you were born. I postponed med school before I even found out I was pregnant. I did it because your father and I had different professional aspirations and we made the decision - together - to move to London so he could finish his graduate education first. It had nothing to do with you."

"But I heard stories that gave me the impression that you were...unhappy in London."

"If I was unhappy, it wasn't because of you. That was a difficult time in our marriage and things were going on that I'm not going to get into right now. But the point is, none of that was about you, okay?"

Abbey stopped herself then to catch her breath. She ran her hand through her hair, pushing her bangs off her forehead. Sensing how much she had upset her mother, Liz kept her mouth shut.

Abbey continued, calmer now. "Yes, I wanted to go to med school, but not at the cost of not having children. Why do you think it has to be one or the other?"

"It just seems so hard, like if you had a choice, you wouldn't choose to have kids."

"I always wanted kids. I wanted kids before I wanted to be a doctor. I've told you that before. I wanted a little girl just like you." She stroked the ends of Liz's hair. "With dark hair and pretty blue eyes, a contagious smile, and an infectious laugh."

"Like that baby doll your mom gave you."

"That's right," Abbey remembered with a smile. "Don't get me wrong, it definitely would have been easier on all of us if I didn't have a 7-year-old waiting at home when I started my residency, but if I had waited to start my family, I might not have ended up with you. And you...Lizzie, I can't imagine my life without you."

Liz turned her stare to the open fields in front of them as several minutes passed without a word. Finally, she replied, "When you say things like that, you just make me feel guiltier."

"Why do you think I say them?" The corner of Abbey's lip curved up towards another smile.

Liz returned the smile this time as she lifted one leg so her chin could rest on her knee. "So if you had it to do all over again, is there anything you'd do differently?"

"I might have looked for a more family friendly residency program, something not nearly as time-intensive as thoracic surgery. I think I would have made an excellent pediatrician."

"I can't picture you as a pediatrician."

"No? You don't think I'm good with kids?"

"You're great with kids! But you're a surgeon. It's what you wanted to do since...forever. I remember you talking about nothing else when you were doing your surgery clerkship. Dad used to say it's who you are, it's in your blood. And you're the one who always says that people should be true to who they are."

"That's right, I do. Okay then, scratch that. You know what I really would do differently?"

"What?"

"I'd find some way to get it into the head of my severely stubborn and headstrong daughter that despite my career choice and despite the fact that I wasn't always there to tuck her in at night or to read her bedtime stories, she still comes first in my life, before my career, before my patients, before anything else. I'd find a million different ways to prove that to her."

"It wouldn't make any difference," Liz replied, playing along. "She'd probably still be an ungrateful brat."

"Well, then, I'd just have to beat her." Liz chuckled. "Remind her for me that she's not too old to take over my knee."

"You never did that."

"You think it's too late to start?"

"Just a tad." The lighthearted exchange relieved the tension between them and after a moment to enjoy the renewed peace, Liz changed the subject. "I wonder what's keeping Dad."

"Nothing. He knows we're talking and he's giving us some privacy."

"How do you know?"

Abbey cocked her brow. "It's your father. I know everything when it comes to him."

"By the way, will I get to help furnish his new place in DC?"

"If you want."

"Good because I have ideas." She threw her leg back down and sat up straight. "Wait! Will he have final say or can we do what we want?"

Abbey caught a mischievous twinkle in her daughter's eye. "Why? What do you have in mind?"

"Cosmo did this two-page spread on Madonna's new seaside condo in Malibu. She's got this totally cool futon and this maroon and white striped lampshade that's to die for!"

Sharing a few laughs, the duo imagined Jed's reaction to what Liz had planned.

* * *

"So here's how it's going to work."

Derek had everyone's attention. He stood at the front of the room, holding maps, canvassing sheets, call sheets, and a dozen pens and pencils in his hands. His audience - comprised of paid staff, volunteers, and interns - quietly listened as he finished up his pep talk and began going over the plans for the day.

"You'll be in groups of four. Everyone has their visibility assignments. You're to stay at your post until 9 a.m. After that, head off to the neighborhood you've been assigned. This isn't random canvassing, folks. You have your list of addresses. Hit ONLY those houses. Those people are the ones who are going to win this election for us. If they're home, remind them to vote, offer them a ride, give them directions, draw them a map of their polling place, whatever they need. If they're not home, leave literature on their doorstep as a reminder. This race is way too close to call. It's going to come down to which group gets their voters to the polls. Don't lose track of time. We need some of you back at your visibility posts by lunchtime. The rest of you will continue canvassing all day. This evening, each group will be assigned to a polling center. There could be more than one group at each site, which is good. If you see anything - and I mean ANYTHING - suspicious or out of the ordinary, get on the phone with me right away. Christine will be standing by and before we hang up, she'll be in her car with a camera crew in tow. Got it?"

From the chair of the finance committee to the volunteer coordinator to the political director to the field staff to Larry, the head speechwriter and deputy campaign director, it was clear that today, there would be no pulling rank. Everyone except Christine and Derek and the event staff, who would be setting up at the Marriot for the victory party, was hitting the pavement.

Peeking his head in from the hall, Jed approached his campaign director. "Derek, could I have a word with them?"

"Sure. Hang on." Derek quelled the chatter and chaos, then turned it over to Jed.

The Nobel Laureate took his place amidst a round of applause. Moved by the gesture, he tried to make eye contact with each and every one of them as he scanned the room from end to end. Then, he began a speech of gratitude.

"It's been a long road. I know it's cliché, but today really is the culmination of months of hard work. I look around and I see so many familiar faces. Some of you have been here since the start...since the primaries. Some of you joined us in September. Others of you just got here a week or two ago. Regardless of when you started, I can't even begin to imagine what you all have done on a daily basis for this campaign."

The crowd was a mix of adults, teens, elderly couples, and college freshmen. Lizzie was the youngest person there, but not by much. To her right and to her left, she was surrounded by kids only a few years older than she was.

"I often get here at 7 a.m.," Jed continued. "And the doors are open, people are on the phones, typewriters are going crazy, volunteers are stuffing envelopes, they're making signs, collecting money, setting up fundraisers, mapping out canvassing charts. And this goes on until after 9 or 10 at night. Daily. Weekends. Holidays. I can't fathom the kind of commitment and dedication to democracy and politics you all must have to be doing this just to get me elected to congress."

Jed was so moved by the support he could feel in the room that he was beaming with appreciation. Just eight months earlier, he had been thrust into a world he knew very little about. Before he began his primary campaign, he hadn't known the difference between earned media and free media; he didn't know what "call time" meant or about the significance of opposition research; he didn't know the daily routine of a campaign's finance office or that candidates sometimes leave their home state for fundraising events.

He learned the ins and outs of canvassing when he was a young volunteer with John F. Kennedy's presidential campaign, but the logistics that went into district canvassing and field planning was beyond his scope of experience. These people taught him that and so much more.

He remembered the day the DCCC hired Derek to be his campaign director. He was a little overzealous and way too stressed, Jed thought, and if it had been up to him, Derek never would have set foot inside Bartlet headquarters. But now he realized what a mistake that would have been. Derek was intelligent and knowledgeable. He knew how to run a campaign and he knew when to outsource what he didn't know.

He brought in Larry and then Christine. He hired the rest of the staff and recruited volunteers and interns to pick up the slack. Soon, it became apparent that despite some friction along the way, Jed and Derek were racing towards the same goal and both were willing to compromise in order to get there.

Jed was leading now. By a small margin, he was the projected winner of this election. With any luck, he hoped to soon squash Roush's political dreams and be named Congressman Josiah Bartlet of New Hampshire's First Congressional District.

And none of it would be happening without the people in that room.

"By the end of the night, as a nation, we will have elected a president, 435 representatives, and 33 senators and it's all because of people like you. You're the ones who make democracy what it is in this country, and you're the reason I have an incredible shot at winning this race. I could stand up here and say thank you, but that just doesn't sound like enough. How do you thank people who've sacrificed so much of themselves? How do you adequately express your gratitude for what they've done? I don't think I can begin to tell you what your efforts have meant to me and to my family. I hope that I can make you all as proud as you've made me if...when...I get to Washington."

He paused when they clapped in response to his phrasing.

"Tonight, after the polls close, I want to see every single one of you at the victory party. This is YOUR party. It's in celebration of all your hard work, of your patriotism and your fidelity to democracy. If I forget to point that out to the news cameras later, feel free to hit me over the head."

Derek nudged Jed gently, reminding him that it was almost time to leave.

"All right, I guess I'm done for now," Jed reluctantly agreed. "Let's go win this thing."

A wave of renewed enthusiasm splashed over the crowd and they replied with cheers as Derek pulled out his team sheets and began to read off the names.

"Here we go. Visibility - Sam, Ava, Lesley, and Jenny, you're at the intersection Elm and Park; Sharon, Amanda, Adam, and Julia at Pine and Keene; Callie, Frank, Kalia, and Sarah - Beverly Blvd. and 19th Street N; Kara, Shelby, James, and Jayne at Mockingbird and 7th Avenue; Kayla, Rita, Greg, and Fern, you're at Maple and Drew."

Everyone was dressed in jeans and sneakers. Sweatshirts and jackets were tucked in campaign tote bags as each newly assimilated team packed a handful of donuts, breakfast croissants, and sandwiches in coolers and filled up multiple thermoses to take on the road.

"Skye, Tarsi, Deb, and Larry - 5th and Somerset; Rick, Adrienne, Mera, and Linda - corner of Lake Allen and Witting; Charlotte, Tami, Paige, and Addezia will be at 7th and Cottonwood; Aimee, Cass, Gemma, and Jess, you're at Cottage and 19th Street S; Lara, Mary, Doug, and Elizabeth - Vonn Road and 118th Avenue; Emma, Sunnie, Ted, and Lindsay..."

One by one, the groups filtered out to begin their most important day of campaigning.

TBC


	23. Chapter 23

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 23

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Abbey and Liz talked things out; Jed's campaign staff prepared for election day campaigning; Liz met Doug Westin while at a Get Out The Vote Rally at the University of New Hampshire (Chapter 8)

Summary: Liz and Doug canvass together; Jed and Abbey take Ellie and Zoey to the polls to vote; it's a fight until the bitter end between Jed and Elliot as election day/night continues

* * *

"Why would someone not big on politics even be here?" Elizabeth scoured the neighborhood with Doug Westin, searching for the addresses listed on their canvassing sheet.

The group of four had split into teams of two after leaving their visibility post and beginning their neighborhood assignment. Mary and Lara paired up to approach the north side of the street since Doug insisted he and Liz would take the south side.

"Who says I'm not big on politics?" Doug asked.

"You've gotta be kidding." Liz gave him a stern look, a reprimand of sorts, reminding him that he confessed his political apathy at the GOTV rally at UNH.

"All right, fine. So I haven't always been politically active, true. But I thought it might be fun to get involved. You got me interested."

"Assuming that's true, you said you've been here volunteering for three weeks. How come I never saw you? And why was it so important to you that you and I be partners on our route today?"

"You never saw me because I only volunteer in the afternoons, when you're in school. I have a lot of night classes, so the day shift is easier. And it wasn't important that we end up as partners today, it just sort of happened that way. They call it fate."

"Or stalking," Liz corrected him. He had practically steamrolled Lara and Mary into letting him team up with her.

"Are you always like this?" he questioned her.

"Like what?"

"Intense and...suspicious."

"I'm not intense and I'm only suspicious of people who have ulterior motives."

"What if my ulterior motives are harmless?"

"No such thing." She walked faster, glancing down at her sheet and up at the addresses. "Where the hell is it?"

Doug smiled at her. "You're so cute when you're on a mission."

Liz stopped and when she did, she grabbed the sleeve on his jacket to stop him. "What are you doing?"

"Flirting?"

"Well, quit. It's creeping me out."

"Why does flirting creep you out?"

"It normally doesn't, but today's an important day. My dad is this close to winning an election - a big one. I don't want him to lose because I got distracted and didn't get my people to the polls on time."

"It'll be fine. We have hours until the polls close. It doesn't matter what time they vote as long as they do."

Liz knew better. Exit polls could change everything. She shook her head at Doug. "You really don't know anything about politics, do you?"

"You can teach me."

"Why would I?" There was a subtle hint of playfulness to her tone.

"Because I'm asking you to."

"No, I mean, why would you want me to? I still don't get why you're here, why you wanted to be my partner so badly, and why you're flirting with me."

"Hello, Earth to Elizabeth," he teased her. "I kinda like you."

"But why?"

"Is that the only question you ever ask? Why, why, why?"

"I'm just in high school. You're in college. Why would you be interested in me when you're surrounded by all those college girls?"

Doug's expression lightened considerably. "College girls have nothing on you. You're smart and pretty. You're even funny when you're not out to annihilate the world."

Liz allowed a small laugh. "You caught me on a bad day. I'm nervous. It's my dad's first real race. I want him to win is all."

"I know," he replied. "That's what makes me like you more."

She was flattered. Trying to hide the rosy hue that blushed her cheeks, she shook her head so her hair would cover them. "You're sweet. And you're pretty cool yourself, but you're too old for me. My parents would never let me even think about dating a college guy."

"Who's asking for a date? I just want to get to know you a little better, like friends. That's all. Is that okay?"

"It's okay, I guess."

"I'm glad to hear it." He followed when she stepped in front of him. Just then, his features succumbed to a devilish grin. Remembering how much it embarrassed her when Jed called her by her nickname, he added, "Lizzie."

"Don't call me that," she snapped as they turned the corner.

* * *

"I don't know anything about Delaware."

The statement came completely out of the blue.

"What?" Her glasses perched on the tip of her nose, Abbey lifted her head out of the book she was reading, lured by the peculiar comment.

"I don't know anything about the state of Delaware," Jed repeated. While she was lounging on the loveseat in the living room, he sat upright in the chair beside her. He, too, had been reading and when he looked up, he pulled his glasses off his face.

"I don't understand what you're saying." Her forehead creased in confusion.

"I'm just saying, you would think that I would know a little more about Delaware other than it's known as the First State."

"It's also known as the Diamond State."

"I rest my case."

Abbey sat up. "Why would I think you would know more about Delaware. You've never lived there, you've never worked there, we don't own property there. Last time I checked, you weren't running for office there."

"You don't think congressmen should know a little something about all 50 states?"

"I think you know more than the average man - and woman - about everything, so I'm willing to forgive a little ignorance on this kind of minutia."

"See, you call it minutia now, but one day, it's gonna be important."

"You're right, Dear. One day, they'll want to secede from the Union and you're going to have to stand before all your colleagues in the House of Representatives and admit that you know nothing about the state of Delaware."

Jed wasn't amused by her sarcasm. "We'll see how flippant you are when I introduce you to Delaware's representatives at our first congressional party and all you can do is stutter and stammer because the only thing YOU know about their state is its nickname."

"Who said I don't know anything else? I know it's the Diamond State and it's also referred to as the First State because it was the first to ratify the U.S. Constitution in 1787. It borders Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, its motto is 'Liberty and Independence,' and its primary exports are poultry, dairy, and soybeans." When she was done, she smiled.

Jed narrowed his eyes in his wife's direction. He rarely admitted it, but he wasn't the only trivia king in his family. "Okay, but I guarantee you don't know the state song."

He was right, she didn't. Jokingly, she replied, "Suwannee River."

"WRONG! That's Florida."

"And here I thought you were completely clueless when it came to other states."

"Not other states. Just Delaware."

"So you say. But really, how much do you know about North Dakota?" Abbey chuckled as Jed pondered the challenge. "Never mind."

"That's all I'm gonna think about all day. You know that, right?"

"I know." She put her book aside, then stood, still chuckling softly. "Are you ready?"

Jed slid his glasses back on his face and looked down to continue reading. "For more abuse?"

"No," she said as she pushed his hands apart and sat down on his lap, facing him. She delicately removed his glasses. "It's time to vote."

Sitting there the way she was, she felt so good to him. Her elbows rested on his shoulders and her fingers manipulated his soft brown hair. "Now?"

"Now."

"You can't just wiggle your sexy little butt over here, get me all hot, and then tell me we have to leave."

"You'll be adequately taken care of tonight," she whispered into his ear. "My parents are bringing the girls back home so you and I will have that great big suite all to ourselves. It's gonna be a night to remember forever."

"Is that a promise?"

"You bet it is." Abbey pressed her lips to his to leave him with a kiss.

* * *

It was a Bartlet family tradition to go to the polls together. Every election day started at breakfast with Jed sharing stories about the country's earliest lawmakers and why they chose the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November as the day to cast their ballots. Once the story was over and everyone finished their meal, the routine was for Ellie to go with Abbey to vote while Liz would tag along with Jed before school.

Today was different though. On this day, the district decided to use schools as polling centers, so the kids were home. Knowing that her husband would go stir crazy sitting at home with nothing to do all day, Abbey had taken the day off as well, so with the exception of Lizzie who was out campaigning, the Bartlet clan hit the polls in the middle of the afternoon.

"I wanna vote too!" Zoey whined in the car. This was a first for her. During the 1982 midterms, her parents had dropped her off at the sitter's before voting.

"Only grown-ups get to vote," Ellie reminded her sister. They had already had this discussion. "When you're a grown-up, you can vote."

"But I wanna vote for Daddy!"

"You see all those people, Sweetheart?" Abbey pointed out the window to the crowd waving 'Jed Bartlet For Congress' signs. "They're all going to vote for Daddy. He's going to get so many votes today. And I'll tell you what, when I vote, I'll let you punch the little hole for me, okay?"

"Okay." That was enough to satisfy the preschooler. She stared out the window in awe of the mob of campaigners - from all the local races - who lined the street outside the polling center.

Ellie, on the other hand, sat back as they pulled into the parking lot. The group who was cheering Jed on, swarmed the car, followed by a single television camera and a couple of newspaper photographers. The ten-year-old bowed her head, hoping her bouncy blonde curls would cover her face when she opened the door and stepped out onto the pavement.

While Jed greeted his supporters, Abbey took Zoey's hand. Her other hand belonged to Ellie, who was clinging to her mother's frame in an effort to shy away from the cameras and the commotion that seemed to follow her father.

* * *

"At this time, with some West Coast polls still open, we're officially calling Virginia, Georgia, and Florida for President Ronald Reagan..."

The news reports were never-ending that night. National presidential election coverage had taken over all three networks and although most polls predicted a landslide for President Reagan's reelection campaign, the official announcements broke into programming every half hour.

On the local front, the moment the polls closed in New Hampshire, updates began scrolling across the bottom of the screen on Channel 9. Channel 7 sporadically interrupted reruns of Gilligan's Island and the other stations were broadcasting out of Boston, so the news from them focused on results in Bean Town rather than Manchester.

In a suite on the sixth floor of the Mariott, Abbey leaned against the arm of a couch in front of the television. Jed was sitting with his elbows resting on his knees and his eyes glued to the box in front of him. Ellie was on her belly on the floor, tutoring Zoey on coloring within the lines of an old Barbie coloring book and occasionally looking up when she heard an anchor or reporter mention her father's name.

"Okay, girls, it's almost time for bed." Abbey tried to prepare them.

"WHAT?" Ellie sat up. "You said we could stay up late. Dad hasn't won yet."

"I know, but you have school tomorrow and it's almost 11:00."

"I don't wanna go to bed," Zoey pouted.

"I don't either," Ellie agreed. "Please, can't we stay up? Just until we can have some cake? Lizzie's been at the party all night and we didn't even get cake and ice cream up here."

"I just sent Grandma down to the party to get Lizzie."

Protocol dictated Jed's absence from his own party. It was normal for the candidate to host a small gathering upstairs in his private room to avoid being ambushed by the press all night, especially in the case of a loss. So while Liz mingled downstairs as an official campaign volunteer, everyone else stayed up in the suite with three televisions all tuned in to election coverage.

"Can't we stay up a little longer?" Ellie flashed her big blue-green eyes at her mother. "PLEASE? We wanna see him win."

Abbey couldn't argue. After all, every single exit poll predicted Jed's victory and how often would the girls get to see their father win such an important race? It was a special night. "All right, we're gonna watch the news at 11 and see what they say, okay? No promises after that."

Already dressed in their pajamas, Zoey and Ellie collected a few pillows to camp out directly in front of the TV. Jed, who was still in a pair of charcoal gray slacks and a white dress shirt, crouched down beside them.

"You're gonna wrinkle," Abbey warned him.

"Who cares?" he shot back as he searched for a crayon to help his daughters color. Just as he started to splash a little blue on Barbie's ballgown, he heard a knock at the door.

"Jed?" Derek tapped lightly before letting himself in. "Roush won't concede."

Jed rose to his feet. "What does it look like?"

"It's the same as it was at 9:00. You're gonna win this thing."

"You're sure?" Jed was still skeptical since he hadn't seen the numbers himself.

"I'm positive. Larry's on the phone with Roush's guy right now. We're hoping to get a concession by 11:30 so we can make the news broadcasts."

"And if we don't?"

Derek shrugged. "We wait."

In that instant, everyone's attention turned to Liz who had just opened the door to the suite.

"Just so we're clear..." she began. "I'm not allowed to date college guys, right?" Her eyes shifted from Jed's stare to Abbey's. She immediately knew the answer. "Just checking."

* * *

By 2 a.m., Ellie and Zoey were stretched out on one of the beds, both sound asleep. Abbey pulled the covers up to tuck them in, then pulled a blanket off the other bed to cover Elizabeth, who was sleeping on the sofa.

Liz stirred when she felt the fabric over her skin. "Hmm?"

"You looked cold."

"I was," she replied. "Thanks."

"Why don't you sleep on the bed? There's plenty of room."

"I don't wanna sleep. I wanna stay up to watch Dad win." Ellie and Zoey had said the same, but they were eventually overcome by the exhaustion Liz was fighting so fiercely. "Roush hasn't called yet?"

Abbey shook her head. "He says he won't until all the votes are manually counted."

"But I thought he already lost." Liz curled her legs under her to change positions.

"He's just postponing the inevitable," Abbey said. "I'm proud of you, by the way."

"What for?"

"For all the work you did on this campaign. You helped your dad win."

"I don't know how much I, personally, helped, but it was fun. In fact, I want to do more when he runs for reelection."

"Bite your tongue." On the heels of such an emotionally draining campaign, Abbey wasn't yet ready to hear about another one.

* * *

The time seemed to pass so slowly that by 3 a.m., Jed sat with Larry, Christine, and Derek at a small table near the suite's kitchenette, strategizing on how to wrangle a concession from Roush. All the experts predicted his loss, but the attorney and former state legislator stubbornly refused to admit to defeat.

"We should send Jed to the party," Christine suggested. "Once word gets out that he's declaring victory, Roush will have no choice but to concede."

"I don't like doing that," Jed said.

"Jed, these people have supported you for so long. They've been at that party since 8:00. You have to go down there. You have to go see them."

"Why can't I just go down to the party without announcing myself as the winner?"

"It's just not done," Larry replied. "The first time they see you should be during your victory speech. Besides, what are you going to do when reporters want to know why you're not giving a speech? It's no secret you won. They're gonna ask. Are you going to tell them it's because Roush refuses to concede?"

"Are reporters still here?"

"Yes," Christine informed him. "But I don't know how much longer they're going to stay. Pretty soon, news directors and assignment editors are going to call them back."

An irritated Derek paced the floor. "The bottom line is everyone is tired. I just went down there. There are people sitting on the floor, some are falling asleep. We can't ask them to stay up all night. You owe them a victory speech, Jed."

"Roush..." Jed began.

"SCREW Roush!" Derek interjected. "We tried to handle this the way it's supposed to happen. We tried to be professional. He lost. It's over. I don't care if he's not willing to concede. We're ready to call it."

Jed looked to Larry and Christine. "You guys agree?"

Both nodded.

"Derek's right," Christine added. "Reporters are falling asleep on the platform. It's been a long day for them too."

While he did feel bad about inconveniencing people, it was important to Jed to do this right. "We're sure? I mean, I'm not going to have to face the cameras tomorrow and do a mea culpa?"

"We're sure," Larry assured him. "You won and not by a small margin either. Roush got less than 40 of the vote."

Jed turned to Abbey for a final opinion. Though she hadn't participated in the discussion, she had been listening the whole time. She nodded to him and when he stood to slip into his suit jacket, she adjusted his tie and fixed his lapel.

"And I had so many other plans for tonight," he told her with a wink.

* * *

Derek, Christine, and Larry weren't wrong. Jed made it downstairs to see his party rapidly dwindling. Though a hundred or so of his staunchest supporters remained, most had fallen asleep in metal chairs or against the wall in the corner of the ballroom.

Reporters were sitting at the edge of a platform built in the back of the room where they had been doing their stand-ups and live cut-ins all night. Tired photographers and other media-credentialed staff had left their cameras and spotlights standing while they kneeled and stretched to loosen up their muscles.

When Jed entered the room, one by one, people took notice, leaping to their feet to prepare for the moment they had been waiting for. He approached the makeshift stage and the podium that stood in front of a dozen American flags, speaking softly at first until more and more people woke up to the sound of his voice.

"It's been a long night, I know. I thank you for staying for so long and for being patient while we worked out a few kinks. I know you're all tired and you're waiting for an announcement. That's why I'm here."

The crowd cheered for three minutes straight while every photographer flashed his camera and every cameraman went live on the air. The press had been in touch with home base all evening and everyone else had seen the election updates on the television monitors in the room. They knew what he was about to say. But the anticipation still grew.

At the Holiday Inn across town, Elliot Roush tended to his own staff, most of whom were trying to persuade him to give up the fight with dignity, despite his adamant protests. Unlike Jed's guests, who waited because they knew their guy had won, Roush's party had practically ended without a single appearance from the candidate himself.

During the sixth hour of their strategy session, a Roush aide noticed Jed speaking live on Channel 9. He quieted everyone down and turned up the volume as they all listened to what the former professor had to say.

"Today, the voters of the great state of New Hampshire spoke out and I am thrilled and deeply honored that they have given me the chance to represent them in the United States House of Representatives."

It was over, even if Elliot Roush wasn't ready to accept it.

TBC


	24. Chapter 24

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 24

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: It was election day 1984; Liz and Doug canvassed together; Elliot Roush refused to concede even though Jed was the projected winner; Jed gave his victory speech and thanked his supporters for voting for him to be their representative in the U.S. Congress; Jed and Abbey learn that Zoey has a nonverbal learning disability (Chapter 15)

Summary: It's Zoey's 5th birthday; Jed and Abbey have different ideas on how to help their daughter; Liz and Doug cross paths again; Derek worries about Christine's reason for taking a job on Jed's staff; Jed receives a special gift from an old friend

* * *

December, 1984, a month after the election

"Zoey, get that ball out of here!"

Abbey's warning fell on deaf ears as Zoey continued her desperate quest to dribble her brand new basketball across the kitchen floor. It was the morning of her 5th birthday and the basketball, courtesy of Jed, had been the first gift her parents had given her.

It was a family tradition of sorts, waking the girls to one present to start their special day. With their other two daughters, Jed and Abbey could wait until mid-morning for the big surprise since both Liz and Ellie were late sleepers, but with Zoey, things were different. Jed often called their youngest angel his Morning Glory, a nickname assigned to her because her energetic and free-spirited personality usually drew her out of bed before sunrise.

Like Abbey, Zoey enjoyed waking up early and taking advantage of the hours when she could roam the house alone. She was her mother's little helper on mornings when Abbey had to cook breakfast, then rush out the door for pre-dawn rounds at the hospital. On other days, she'd find a way to entertain herself until the boredom finally drove her to pestering her parents or her sisters to wake up and play with her.

Every December, however, on this particular day, Jed, Abbey, Liz, and Ellie beat her to the punch, barging into her room to sing their birthday greeting before she had a chance to open her eyes and hop out of bed. Normally, they'd reclaim their sleep soon afterwards, but today, there was too much to do to get ready for her party.

Jed was standing at the kitchen table, adding homemade heart-shaped candies to the two-tiered pink and lavender My Little Pony birthday cake when a frustrated Zoey tried to dribble past him.

Sympathetically, he said, "When we get home tonight, I promise I'll show you how to do it."

"I wanna do it now."

"I can't help you, Sweetheart. As soon as I'm finished here, I have to drop off some papers at my office and then it'll be time for all your friends to come over." He noticed her disappointed right away. "But we won't go to bed tonight until you learn, okay?"

Zoey accepted that answer, though she was still upset by it. "Okay."

Sprinkling cheese on the pasta salad she was preparing for the party, Abbey whispered to her husband, "I told you we should have given her the dollhouse first. She would have been occupied for the rest of the morning."

"She is occupied."

"She's frustrated. I'm not sure a basketball was the best idea."

"So you've said."

Because Zoey had recently been diagnosed with a nonverbal learning disability, Jed wanted to find a gift that would force her to work with others, one that would teach her the importance of teamwork and help her learn to read the facial expressions and gestures of her peers, something with which she was struggling.

Abbey was skeptical that basketball was the answer. Unlike Jed, she felt that getting Zoey involved in an individual sport that would foster a sense of accomplishment and raise her self esteem would be better in the long run. Learning to count on herself to reach her goals should take priority, she told Jed, at least until she started school.

"I'm not trying to insult your gift. I'm just saying that her teacher made it clear that one of the biggest hurdles for Zoey at the moment is coordination."

"That's exactly why basketball is good for her."

"But if she can't do it, it'll just be another setback. I don't want her to get discouraged."

"Look, Abbey, there are many different ways to deal with this. Give basketball a chance, okay? If it doesn't work, we'll think of something else."

With a sigh, Abbey agreed to suppress her doubts for now. "All right. But you're going to have to find a way to persuade her not to play in the kitchen. It's only a matter of time before we have an accident."

"Fair enough. I'll take care of it as soon as I finish adding these hearts to the cake."

"Make sure taking care of it means leading her out the back door and not joining in on a game of one-on-one in the living room."

"What makes you think..."

"Because you had the same look on your face when Lizzie was little, just before you and she took out the chandelier in the dining room, remember?" As Jed opened his mouth to respond, she added, "And don't say it's different."

"It is different. See, this time, I'm aiming for the one in the foyer." He gave her a devilish grin.

"I'll play with you later, Zoey." Liz walked into the kitchen with the goodie bags Abbey had told her to assemble for the kids coming to the party. "Mom, these are done."

"Thanks, Lizzie. Put them on the counter, please."

"LIZZIEEEEEE!" Zoey whined as she tugged on her big sister's skirt.

"Come here, baby girl." Abbey kneeled to the floor at eye level with Zoey. "I told you that we don't have time to play right now. You want us to be ready to go when your friends get here, don't you?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, then why don't you go help Ellie?" She stroked the ends of Zoey's strawberry blond tresses.

"What's Ellie doing?"

"She's writing all your friend's names on the place cards we bought with the little horses on them. Maybe you can organize them for her."

Still unhappy, Zoey reluctantly went along. "Okay."

Once the five-year-old turned the corner, Abbey rolled the basketball out of the kitchen.

"The cake is officially done," Jed announced proudly, spinning it around to give everyone a good look.

"Careful, it'll topple over."

"It's fine," he argued. "Now that that's finished, I need to get to the office."

"Everyone's going to be here at noon, Jed. Don't be late."

"I won't."

He left just as a whiny Zoey reentered the kitchen.

"Ellie won't let me help!"

"Tell her I said she has to," Abbey replied.

"ELLLLLLLLLIIIIIIEEEEEEE, MOMMY SAID YOU HAVE TO LET ME HELP!"

"Mom, did you pick up the candles?" Liz asked after Zoey ran out of the kitchen.

"I told you to do that."

"Yeah, but I called and told Ellie to tell you that they were out of sparklers."

"So you didn't get anything?"

"Didn't Ellie tell you?"

"ABBEY!" That was Jed shouting from the bottom of the stairs moments before he burst back into the kitchen. "Where's my briefcase? All my call sheets are in there and Derek needs a list of donors to file with the FEC."

"It's upstairs."

"Where upstairs?"

"Just upstairs."

"You say that like 'upstairs' refers to the corner of a room or something."

"Try our closet, Jed."

"I already did. It's not there."

"Then I really don't know."

Ellie stormed in next. "Mom, Zoey doesn't want to help. All she wants to do is color all the horses on the place cards."

"Then let her color," Abbey grumbled. "And why didn't you tell me that Lizzie didn't get the candles?"

The ten-year-old shrugged. "I forgot."

"So what am I supposed to do without candles?" She shook her head at her middle daughter's absent-mindedness. "Go see if you can find some, all right?"

"I really need my briefcase," Jed repeated as Ellie walked out.

"And I need candles," Abbey returned.

"I'll pick some up on my way home. Now about the briefcase..."

"I don't know where it is, Jed."

"You're the one who straightened up our room last night. Where did you put it?"

Ellie returned with one of the place cards to show her mother the way Zoey had scribbled out the name. "See? This is why I didn't want her to help. I'm writing names and all she's doing is crossing them out!"

"Did you tell her not to, El?" Liz asked from her perch on one of the counterside stools.

"She doesn't listen!"

"I DO SO!" Zoey pouted as she joined her family in an effort to defend herself. She was holding the rest of the place cards in one hand and her basketball in the other.

"Zoey, get the ball out of the kitchen," Abbey warned once again. "And Ellie, you're supposed to be looking for candles."

"All right, look..." Jed commanded everyone's attention. "Zoey, let Ellie do whatever it is she's doing for the party. If you're bored, pick up a coloring book. And listen to your mother about the basketball. Lizzie, can you please run to the store and pick up some candles? Abbey, I REALLY need my briefcase."

"How many times do you need to hear this? I don't know where your briefcase is. I didn't touch it when I was cleaning up last night."

Ellie grabbed the place cards out of Zoey's hands, provoking a scream from the birthday girl. "OW! YOU SCRATCHED ME!"

"I didn't mean to!"

"Ellie, you know better than to snatch things away like that." Abbey scolded her, then waited for her to address her baby sister.

"I'm sorry I scratched you, Zoey."

Zoey saw an opportunity with that apology. As she followed Ellie out, she badgered her again. "Can I help you? PLEASE?"

"Dad said you can color."

"I don't wanna color."

"Abbey..." Jed was still waiting on Abbey. "If you didn't touch it, who did?"

Abbey ignored him this time, choosing instead to focus on Liz who was searching for car keys. "Liz, can you take Zoey with you to the store?"

"Yeah." Liz stepped out of the kitchen to holler for Zoey. "ZOEY?"

"I didn't do it!" Zoey came sprinting into the kitchen with the same denial she always used when she thought she might be in trouble.

"I bet you did," Liz teased her.

"I DIDN'T!"

Liz chuckled at her insistence, then let her off the hook. "Relax, you're not in trouble. Mom just wanted me to take you to the store."

"Okay!" Zoey picked up her basketball to bring along.

"The basketball stays here," Liz told her.

"I wanna take it!"

Abbey looked to Jed when the preschooler repeatedly tried to dribble. "You said you were going to talk to her about getting that thing out of the kitchen."

"If she didn't listen to you, what makes you think she'll listen to me?"

"Because if she doesn't, she's going to get a time-out."

"All right, we'll deal with that in a second. First, answer my question. If you didn't touch it, where could it be?"

"Maybe I slid it under the bed." That was a random guess on Abbey's part. "I don't remember."

"We're not going anywhere with the basketball, Zo," Liz said firmly.

"But Mommy said I can't play in the house."

"See?" Jed nudged his wife. "She IS listening to you. Problem solved."

"Well, you can't play in the store either." Liz tried to reason with her sister.

"Then I don't wanna go!"

"Did you check the bathroom?" Abbey asked Jed, referring to his missing briefcase.

"Why would I check the bathroom?"

"Because sometimes, when I'm not thinking, I put things in places they don't belong."

"So what's next? Should I expect to find my boxers in the freezer one day?"

"If that happens, you can believe I did it on purpose."

Zoey narrowed her eyes at Liz. "Daddy would let me bring it!"

"Daddy isn't taking you. I am. And I say you can't bring your basketball."

"You're not my boss, Lizzie!"

"Whatever, Zo." Liz was losing patience. "Make up your mind. Are you coming or not?"

"Can I bring my ball?"

"NO!"

Jed tuned out the drama between his daughters. "If the office closes before I get there..."

"What, Jed? You really think you're going to be locked out of your own campaign headquarters?"

Zoey wrapped her little arms around her ball protectively. "I wanna bring it."

"You can play with it when we get back. Come on, it's getting late." Liz tapped the ball from the top so that it fell out of Zoey's arms.

"STOP IT!" Zoey cried as she lurched forward to get the ball that kept escaping her grasp.

"ZOEY!" Abbey yelled. "How many times do I have to tell you to get the ball out of the kitchen?"

Abbey furiously grabbed the ball on the third rebound and tossed it carelessly around the corner. Unfortunately, she missed her aim. The ball ricocheted off the counter and crashed right into the table before anyone could stop it from knocking the two-tiered birthday cake onto the floor. The plastic ponies that trimmed the top layer tumbled underneath.

* * *

It took an hour to dry Zoey's tears after her beautiful birthday cake was destroyed by the stray ball. Once Abbey calmed her down, Liz volunteered to take her to the bakery to see if it was possible to recreate the cake on such short notice.

The duo rushed into the store, along with Ellie. Liz, who had been eager to take charge just seconds earlier, hesitated when she got a look at the clerk. She couldn't believe her eyes. Doug Westin, the guy she canvassed with on election day and hadn't seen in a month, was working behind the counter.

"Long time no see," he greeted her.

"Are you guys busy?" Liz asked.

"Not really. What's up?"

"We put in an order for a birthday cake last week and we picked it up last night. We need another one just like it."

"When?"

"Now." Liz leaned into the counter when Doug shook his head in a discouraging way. "Come on. You're not that busy, you just said so."

"Yeah, but we don't have that fast a turn-around."

"I taught you a little about politics, you know."

"So you've come to collect on a debt?"

"No." She smiled.

"Then you came by just to see me." Doug teasingly winked at her.

"Get real. I didn't even know you work here."

"Now you do."

"Look, it's for my little sister. It's her birthday and we had an incident with the cake. She's kinda heartbroken about it."

He peeked at Zoey, then looked back at Liz. "Okay, fine. I'll talk to the owner. She's the baker. Whatever she says goes."

"Thank you." Liz walked Ellie and Zoey away from the counter so they could have a little more privacy.

"Who was that, Lizzie?" Ellie quizzed her.

"Just some guy who worked on Dad's campaign with me."

"What's his name?"

"Doug, I think." She knew his name without a doubt, but she had been trying to blow off their meetings, knowing that if she pursued anything at all with Doug, Jed and Abbey would never approve.

"He's cute," Ellie said. "Don't you think he's cute, Zoey?"

Zoey nodded as she usually did when all she wanted was to agree with Ellie. "Can he make my cake?"

"He's checking," Liz answered. "Don't worry about it, Zo. If they can't do it, then we'll find another bakery that can."

"I think he likes you," Ellie continued. "He definitely looks like he likes you."

"What if nobody can, Lizzie?" Zoey frowned.

"Someone will," Liz promised. "We'll check all over town and in Concord too. If no one can do it, then you and I will bake it ourselves. Deal?"

Zoey happily nodded. "Deal."

"Do YOU like HIM, Lizzie?" Ellie was more interested in what was going on with Doug. She loved listening to Liz talk about guys, but she couldn't understand why Liz was being so tight-lipped about this one.

"No, I don't, Ellie. I like someone else."

"SCOTT!" Zoey blurted out, earning Liz's scornful stare. The preschooler had a penchant for snooping on her sisters.

"If you don't quit listening to my phone calls," Liz threatened, "I'm going to tell Mom that you were the one who broke the heel off her favorite shoe."

Zoey's expression said it all. She had no idea that Liz knew about the dress-up incident that resulted in the broken heel, and truth be told, Liz didn't - until now.

"Anyway," Liz began again with Ellie, "Doug's in college."

"Mom and Dad would never let you date someone in college," Ellie mumbled.

"No, they wouldn't," Liz agreed.

"I still think he likes you though."

Eavesdropping on the girls, Doug laughed softly before he eventually interrupted them. "Liz?"

"Yeah?"

"I pulled up the original order. Evelyn can do it. Give her an hour, okay?"

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Liz gleefully replied as Zoey cheered. "We'll be back in an hour."

Buttoning up her coat, Ellie said, "I bet he talked the owner into it because of you, Lizzie."

"That's not true, El."

"I bet it is."

"Come on." Liz opened the door for her sisters.

"Lizzie's got a boyfriend." Ellie urged Zoey to sing along with her and together, the two chanted the phrase all the way to the car.

"Knock it off, you two, or else you can walk home!" Liz's threat went ignored.

"Lizzie's got a boyfriend. Lizzie's got a boyfriend."

* * *

"Derek, are all the posters coming down today?" Holding a couple of signs, Christine stood in the doorway of what used to be Derek's office.

"Yeah. We've gotta be out of here by seven."

It had been four weeks since the election and the old warehouse on Elm Street that served as Bartlet headquarters since the months leading up to the primaries, now looked less like a busy campaign office and more like the abandoned building it once was. Most of the staffers had already taken off to pursue new endeavors, but a few remained to tie up loose ends and finish up paperwork - financial and otherwise - that had to be sent to the Federal Election Commission to be kept on file.

"I'm going to need help with the filing cabinets when you have time." She turned to leave until Derek called out to her.

"Chris?" He paused for a beat, even once she was facing him. Delicately, he began, "The transition team told me you're taking a job in DC - with Jed."

"I heard you were offered one too. You turned it down."

"Yeah. And I'm actually surprised that you didn't. How many times have you said that campaigning is your thing? Are you really going to be happy on the Hill?"

"I think I will be, yes."

"Chris..."

"Stop, Derek." Christine knew what he was about to say. He had said it twice before. He suspected it wasn't the hustle and bustle of Washington that drove her to accept this job and he was right. There was something more significant involved - her attraction to Jed. "I'm an adult. I know what I'm doing."

"Famous last words."

Startled, both Derek and Christine looked to see Jed standing behind her. She blushed for a moment until she realized he had only overheard the very end of their conversation.

"Congressman." Christine tried to hide her surprise.

Jed smiled. "I'm still not used to that. I don't think I'll ever get used to it."

"Well, you better try," Derek said as he led his former boss down the hall. "You're going to be hearing it for at least the next two years."

The communications office was their first stop. It was empty now, except for a few filing cabinets that stored every press release the staff had written. It was the same story in the field and finance offices, in the volunteer room, and the lobby. The walls that once held campaign paraphernalia, were bare. The rooms that hosted chaotic strategizing sessions and political debate were silent.

The change was a bit jarring for Jed. His last visit was the day after the election, during a barbecue on the back porch with every one of his staffers, interns, and volunteers. He thanked them, once again, then collected his things as his transition team set up shop in the call room to interview staffers he would potentially take with him to Washington.

"Are you sure you don't want to join us in DC?" he asked Derek.

"I'm looking forward to a six-month vacation. After that, it'll be time to search for the next great campaign."

"Well, if you ever change your mind..." Jed extended his hand to shake Derek's. "I couldn't have done this without you."

Derek's gratitude was obvious in his response. It had taken a while, but both men eventually realized that in order to beat Elliot Roush, they had to work together and in the process, they built on the respect they found for one another.

In that instant, a briefcase sitting on top of the filing cabinet caught Jed's eye. "Is that mine?"

"Yeah. You left it here after the barbecue."

"Abbey's gonna kill me. I gave her a hard time this morning because I thought she lost it."

"Uh oh. Looks like you're going to have to apologize."

"Nah." Jed was a master at this. "We're leaving for Zoey's birthday party shortly. I'll just load everyone into the car, then sneak it upstairs and slide it under the bed."

"That's terrible," Derek laughed. "Oh, I almost forgot..." He reached for the giftwrapped box he had put in the top drawer of the cabinet. "This came for you."

"It came here?" Jed curiously examined it. "There's no card."

"Anonymous supporters are kinda scary, aren't they?"

He ripped the wrapping paper, opened the lid, and stared silently at what he found inside. It was an 18-karat gold ballpoint pen. On the side, scripted in elegant calligraphy, it said, 'Congressman Josiah Bartlet.'

Suddenly, it occurred to Jed that he didn't need a card for this gift. He knew exactly who it was from - a man who believed that a pen was the best gift one could give to another because it was the only tool necessary to convey a world of ideas through the written word.

It was from Leo.

* * *

In the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, a number of scenic trails run along the picturesque lakeside towns at the base of a large hill near the Ossipee Mountain range.  
This was where Zoey's friends and family would celebrate her birthday, horseback riding through the countryside's amateur paths that criss crossed a plunging waterfall and a gray-stoned mansion above, known to residents as the castle in the clouds.

The adventure was Abbey's idea. It all tied in to her theme for this birthday and gave everyone a preview of the main gift she had in store for her youngest daughter. While Jed pushed the idea of team sports, Abbey had signed Zoey up for Pony Club - a national organization that promoted junior equestrians - in hopes that it would restore Zoey's confidence and eventually make an impact in dealing with her learning disability.

"You were right," Jed confessed as he approached his wife while she was sliding her feet into her riding boots. "This was a good idea. I've never seen Zoey so excited."

Zoey's love for horses was no secret. She often begged her parents to let her ride alone at the farm, but she always had to settle for riding with Abbey. Today, they allowed her the freedom to climb onto a pony by herself for the very first time and, flanked by Jed and Abbey and a riding instructor, she and ten of her friends would tour the children's trail at the foot of the mountain.

"The basketball was good too," Abbey admitted. "She's going to have a lot of fun once you lower the hoop in the driveway and teach her to play."

"Lizzie bought her a Rubik's Cube, just like she did for Ellie on her 5th birthday." Jed picked up on the unspoken thought racing through Abbey's mind. "It's okay. Liz and Ellie are going to work with her. They'll show her how it goes."

Abbey nodded. "That might be the thing that helps her with colors at the very least."

"I think it will," Jed agreed. "Abbey, she's going to be fine. Next year, she'll start kindergarten and this will all be behind us."

"It won't, Jed. This is the easy stuff. When she starts school...that's when it's going to get complicated."

"She's a Bartlet. She'll pull through. And we'll help her every step of the way."

Once she tied her laces, Abbey stood and put her hand in the crook of his arm as they strolled down the brook to stables just a few feet away.

"I know we will."

TBC


	25. Chapter 25

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Changes

Chapter 25

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: On Zoey's 5th birthday, Jed gave her a basketball while Abbey enrolled her in Pony Club, a junior equestrian organization; Liz and Doug ran into each other at the bakery; when Derek found out that Christine took a job on Jed's Washington staff, he worried that she was attracted to Jed; Jed received a gold pen from Leo

Summary: Abbey gets a job offer; the Bartlets have fun on Christmas Eve

Author's Note: Thanks for all the support and feedback for this story. It was a lot of fun to write!

* * *

"'Twas the night before Christmas when aaaalllllll through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care in hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there."

The sound of that familiar voice monopolized Abbey's attention the moment the elevator doors opened. She looked down the hospital corridor and saw her husband sitting on a large red and gold chair, known to the kids who were captivated by his performance as Santa's throne.

Jed had played Santa Claus in the pediatric wing of the hospital on many Christmas Eves and each and every time he did, Abbey found some excuse to sneak upstairs and watch him in action as the hospital's littlest patients, not much older than Zoey, gathered at his feet and sat before him to hear classic holiday tales.

When he finished up The Night Before Christmas, he pulled out his big red bag and uttered the predictable question he always asked, "Who's up for PRESENTS?"

Robert Nolan approached Abbey who was snickering at the enthusiastic little ones. "He's sure got a way with kids."

"I know," she replied without batting an eyelash. Abbey didn't need to be reminded of her husband's talent with children. After all, she had seen him mesmerize each of their daughters from the day they were born. "What are you doing up here?"

"Finishing up a consult. What about you?" Her expression gave her away. Robert shook his head. "You're a sucker for that red suit, aren't you?"

"I can't lie."

He watched her for another moment and realized that 'sucker' was an understatement. "You're thinking naughty thoughts."

Abbey turned to him then, her bottom lip curled under her top and a Cheshire grin plastered on her face. Robert playfully covered his ears.

"You know what, way, WAY too much information."

"You asked the question," she reminded him, amused by his reaction.

"I did, regrettably so," he said. "Big plans for Christmas?"

"We usually do the holiday thing on Christmas Day. Jed's brother and his family, my parents, my sister and her kids are all coming to the farm. Tonight, though, it'll be just the five of us and an early evening mass at church."

"Sounds nice."

"What are you and Karen doing?"

"Her parents flew in from Georgia. They're at the house now."

"You're kidding! They're there now? Why are you here?" It took Abbey a second to remember that unlike Jed and her parents, Robert wasn't close to his in-laws. "Oh, right."

"I'll make it home for dinner, not to worry."

"I didn't say a thing."

"You didn't have to...yet. I wouldn't want to tempt another Abbey Bartlet lecture on the importance of family."

"You know that lecture well by now."

"That, I do." Robert secretly enjoyed the way she constantly teased him about being closer to his relatives. "Anyway, Abbey, I'm glad I ran into you. It seems like you're never out of the O.R. these days."

"I am now. What's up?"

"You know about our new affiliate hospital in Manchester?"

"I heard something about it."

"Well, what you may not have heard is that I'm leaving next month. I've been promoted to Chief of Surgery at the new place."

"Robert." Abbey moved in to give him a hug. "Congratulations."

Robert had been the first person Abbey had met at Dartmouth-Hitchcock, the first one who interviewed her for a residency spot during her last year in medical school, the first one to talk her through the process and introduce her to the residency program director.

When she started her internship after graduation, Abbey was terrified. No longer cloaked in the security of the title "medical student," her fear was obvious in every breath she took. Robert reached out to her. He became her mentor, her friend, and her professional confidante.

"I can't believe you're leaving." She was happy about his new endeavor, but she had to admit she'd miss him.

"That's not what I came to tell you. That's just what I had to tell you before I could ask you the other thing."

"What's the other thing?"

"I need to build a full-time staff and you're the best thoracic surgeon I know. So, how about it? Will you let me help you move your practice Manchester?"

"You're serious about this?"

"I wouldn't joke about it. I need a talented surgeon and from knowing you the way I do, I assume you'd be happier working closer to home, especially now that Jed's on his way to DC, right?"

Abbey nodded. "I'd like to be closer to my girls."

"Then say yes and we both win."

It didn't take much prodding to squeeze an acceptance out of Abbey. Practicing in Manchester meant flexibility and convenience in her schedule and at this time in her family's life, those were commodities she couldn't easily reject.

If Jed hadn't been in the middle of handing out Christmas presents to the children, she would have marched over there to tell him the good news. Instead, she settled for leaning back against the nurse's station and watching him in action, unable to stop her mind from drifting to the reality that in one short week, he would be living in Washington without her.

* * *

That afternoon, as Abbey pulled up the gravel driveway towards the farmhouse, she heard the sound of laughter echoing from the distance. She got a closer look when she turned the corner to see Jed caught up in a game of basketball with Ellie, Zoey, and Liz.

Abbey passed by them, then parked the car and got out to approach her family. "Oh, how can you guys stand it? It's FREEZING out here!"

"We're fine," Jed replied. "We're running around. Besides, I made the girls dress in layers and if they get cold, their coats are right over there."

Abbey moved out of the way as Liz and Ellie came dribbling by, clearing a path for Zoey to take over so Jed could raise her up on his shoulders and help her make a basket. The five-year-old gleefully bounced the ball off the hoop, then looked to her father for another shot.

"So, who's got room for one more teammate?" Shedding her coat, Abbey stepped out onto the center of the makeshift court.

"Seriously?" Jed was pleasantly surprised. It was no secret that basketball wasn't Abbey's favorite sport.

"Seriously."

"Mom can be on my team," Liz offered. "Ellie and Zoey can play with Dad."

Jed agreed, though he kept his eye on Liz in a failed effort to overhear what she was whispering to Abbey while he lowered Zoey to the ground and ushered his younger daughters to his side of the court.

"That's all I do?" Abbey asked loud enough to entice her husband's prying ears.

"That's it." Liz nodded. "Ready?"

Jed suspiciously joined Abbey in place for the tip-off. Liz stood between them to throw the ball and as soon as she did, he outjumped Abbey, tipping it to Ellie, who began furiously dribbling towards the basket with Liz hot on her heels.

"Pass it to Zoey! Pass it to Zoey!"

With little time to react, Ellie heard her father's voice and knew she had to get rid of the ball. She threw a bounce pass to Zoey, who caught it in her hands and tried to mimic her big sister in an awkward dribble across the court. Before she lost the ball to her skilled opponents, though, Jed lifted her up to make a basket.

This time, she did.

"Way to go, Zoey!" Ellie greeted her with a high-five that made Zoey proud.

"Two to zip!" Jed announced, smirking, as he joined his girls in their celebration.

"Did we win, Daddy?" Zoey asked.

"Not yet, Sweetheart. But we will."

Over on the other side, the Bartlet ladies geared up for round two.

Liz winked at Abbey, then recovered the ball and dribbled it out from under the basket into a circle around the concrete. Abbey stood right in the center - her feet planted to the ground - while Jed hovered over Liz, guarding her with the intensity of a hawk until Liz, with her back to him, ran him right into Abbey, freeing the teenager to make a bank shot and tie the score.

Mother and daughter established their own victory cheer as Jed watched in disbelief.

"You set a pick," he accused his wife.

Abbey shrugged. "Is that what that is? Lizzie just told me to stand here."

With renewed determination and a good-natured chuckle he couldn't suppress, Jed huddled with Zoey and Ellie to set their next strategy in motion.

* * *

"I'm just saying if you were going for a three-pointer, you should have stood further out," Jed argued that evening as he and Abbey dressed for church.

"It's time to let it go, Jethro." Standing in front of the full-length mirror beside the closet, Abbey pulled a white satin slip over her head. "You won the game. Isn't that enough?"

"I'm not complaining. I just want you to learn for next time, when it's me and you against the girls."

"That's not exactly fair, is it?"

"Don't underestimate our daughters. Lizzie's fantastic and Ellie's much better than I thought. Say, why doesn't she ever want to play when I ask her?"

"Ellie?"

"Yeah. I ask her to shoot hoops now and then and she always says no. I figured she didn't want to learn. I didn't realize Liz had taught her."

"Basketball is your thing with Liz. I think Ellie feels like a third wheel."

"That's ridiculous," Jed sputtered while straightening his tie in the mirror.

"When I was growing up, my dad and I had our own traditions. Every Saturday afternoon, we'd go hiking in the mountains behind Lake Champlain, just the two of us. When Kate was old enough to join us, we invited her, but it wasn't as much fun for her."

"Why?"

"Dad and I did it first?"

"So, what, Ellie can't play just because I played with Lizzie first?"

"No, that's not what I'm saying. Things parents do with the older sibling aren't as sentimental for the younger one. Ellie's got it twice as bad. She's the middle child. Zoey's into things she's already outgrown and things you do with Liz just don't matter to her. Anyway, she doesn't enjoy basketball like you and Lizzie do. Soccer is more her sport. Have you picked up a soccer ball lately and asked her play?"

"I'm the one who taught her how to play soccer."

"Yeah, but you haven't played lately. The first weekend you're home, you should take her out to play." Abbey was working hard to clasp her bracelet around her wrist. Eventually, she gave up and cornered Jed for help.

"The first weekend I'm home," he scoffed. "I hate the sound of that."

"The days are going to fly by before you know it," she said, strolling towards the closet when Jed finished clasping her bracelet. "Robert Nolan offered me a job today."

That was an unexpected detour. "What?"

"At DHMC's new affiliate hospital in Manchester. He's the new Chief of Surgery."

"Really?"

"He wants me to move my practice. I'll still have privileges in Hanover, of course, but the bulk of my patients will be here."

"So you already said yes?"

Abbey shot him a quizzical stare. "Shouldn't I have?"

"Yes, of course. I mean, if that's what you want, yes, you should have. That's great news."

"He said one of the reasons he thought I'd take it is that he knew I'd want to work closer to home now that you'll be living in DC during the week."

Jed was touched by the sentiment. "He's a good friend."

"He is. We have a lot of people trying to make this easier on us. My parents offered to watch the girls so I can come to you any weekend you can't make it down."

"They're assuming there's going to be a weekend I won't come home?" He zipped up her dress when she struggled with the back zipper.

"You can set them straight at dinner tomorrow." Abbey laughed at his stubbornness. He refused to believe, for even a minute, that his schedule might not always be his own in Washington.

"Damn right I will," he said with lighthearted determination.

"The point is, this is going to work, Jed. Everyone's in our corner." She turned towards him to straighten the tie he had never quite straightened. "You look tired."

"It's been a long day."

"It's going to be an even longer night."

"I know. We still have to put together the stockings, Ellie's bike, Lizzie's..."

Abbey rubbed her lips along his earlobe and whispered, "That's not what I meant."

The implication of what was to come was clear in her seductive tone.

"No?" Jed replied flirtatiously.

Abbey shook her head slowly. "Uh uh."

"What the hell are we waiting around for? Let's get this show on the road!"

Laughing, she slipped her hand into the crook of his arm as they headed out of their bedroom, called for their daughters, and left the house to attend Christmas Eve Mass.

* * *

"Hurry, Ellie! We'll miss Santa!"

"Okay, okay."

After the family returned from church, Ellie and Zoey camped out in Ellie's room, peeking out through a crack in the door to ensure the coast was clear before they tiptoed downstairs.

Though Ellie suspected the truth about Santa Claus, she wouldn't dare utter a word of it to Zoey. Playing along, she quietly shut the door and led her sister down the steps. They turned at the bottom landing, practically sprinting towards the den, home to the traditional six-foot Christmas tree standing beside the fireplace.

Along the way, Zoey pointed to the empty plate and glass they had filled with cookies and milk before going to bed. "Santa came ALREADY!"

"Yeah, he did."

"We missed him!"

"He's good at disappearing before kids can see him."

Her tone was empathetic, though not for the reason Zoey assumed. Ellie was disappointed that she had scanned the sea of presents under the tree and realized that she didn't get the bike she wanted for Christmas.

Little did she know that Jed and Abbey had heard the girls giggling upstairs. Instead of tying a bow on the bike, they decided to only leave out the smaller gifts so that Ellie, Zoey, and Lizzie could have their fun - like they did every Christmas Eve - without spoiling the big surprise for morning.

"You know if Santa catches you," Elizabeth whispered from behind them. "he'll take all his presents back."

"Lizzie! You scared us! Why are you down here?"

"I had to bring Mom's presents down."

It was well known in the Bartlet house that if they dared to set Abbey's gifts under the tree a moment too soon, she'd be unable to resist them before Christmas. So, rather than tempting her, Lizzie hid the presents upstairs until her mother had retired for the evening.

"What are you guys doing?" the teen asked her sisters as she placed the gifts on top of the others.

"We came to see Santa, but he already came," Zoey answered.

"So now we wanna look inside our stockings!" Ellie continued.

Five stockings hung from the mantle - a green one for Jed with his name embroidered in the fur along the top in the center of two miniature rattling bells. Abbey had dropped a giftwrapped Rolex watch inside when he wasn't looking.

Next was Abbey's, a cream-colored stocking with her name spelled out in festive red Christmas ribbon. She was busy organizing the stocking stuffers for the kids to notice Jed slipping a diamond and ruby necklace in the pouch.

The pink stocking was Lizzie's, her childhood nickname sparkling in light pink jewels along a dusting of snowflake trim across the middle. The white one beside it was Ellie's and the burgundy one next to that belonged to Zoey. Both names were scripted with gold satin ribbon on a bed of plush velvet fabric and their stockings, along with Lizzie's, were overflowing with candy and gifts.

"You want a Hershey's Kiss, Zoey?"

Zoey had been contemplating opening one of her own kisses, but since Liz was offering her one, she decided to save hers and take her sister's. "Thank you."

"Here, El." Liz tossed another one out of her stocking.

"Thanks!" Ellie began to unwrap the treat. "Can I have a peanut butter cup too?"

"Only if you let me have your chocolate Santa."

Soon, all three girls poured out the contents of their stockings. They sat on the floor beside the coffee table, exchanging candy and trading Christmas secrets about what each parent had bought the other. Then, Lizzie returned the stockings and grabbed the three bags of candy she had bought earlier that day - one for her and one for each of her sisters - so they could fill their parents' stockings.

When they finished, they brought over the annual Bartlet family Christmas picture, in a sterling silver frame with the year 1984 engraved on the side, and set it on top of the mantel.

"This one's much better than last year's," Ellie said, referring to the beautiful holiday colors she and her sisters had chosen for their Christmas dresses.

All three were smiling broadly in that photograph, blissfully oblivious to the red blush that colored their mother's face, a result of their father pinching her rear right before the camera flashed.

"I think so too," Lizzie agreed. "It's my favorite."

On the tree, personalized ornaments dangled off the needles, the name of each family member shining just as bright as the crystal angel on top. Underneath, so many presents crowded the stand that Liz found it nearly impossible to reach for the switch to turn on the lights.

"Look, Lizzie!" Ellie grabbed a box addressed to her sister. "I bet you got those boots you wanted!"

"I bet I did too, but I also bet they're not in that box."

"How do you know?"

"Because Mom always does her best to try to conceal the gifts. You see that big box in the corner? Five bucks says those are my boots and the box that actually looks like the boot box is probably something totally different, like a pair of earrings or something."

"That's sneaky," Zoey laughed.

"Mom knows all the tricks." Liz flipped the switch and once the lights were on, she laid down flat on her back, her head resting on the skirt of the stand just below the branches.

Ellie and Zoey put away the presents they were inspecting and joined her. They, too, slid in on their backs with their heads under the tree, staring at the ornaments above lit by the glow of flickering holiday lights.

"You know what we forgot to do?" Liz asked.

"What?"

"Remind Dad to share the legend of the Christmas tree."

Like all holidays, Jed never let a Christmas go by without a historical lecture.

"He can tell us the story tomorrow."

"He's supposed to do it on Christmas Eve. He always does."

"We always remind him. Why didn't we remind him?"

"We forgot too."

"Then we'll remind him tomorrow."

"He has to finish packing tomorrow. He's already brought one suitcase downstairs." Liz had seen the bags when she followed her sisters down.

"Already?" The news surprised Ellie. "But he's not leaving until the day after Christmas."

"Lizzie?"

"Yeah, Zo?"

"How far is Washington?"

"Not too far."

"Can you drive us there?"

"I won't have to. He'll be home a lot. And guess what?"

"What?"

"Have you heard of that new station on cable - CSPAN?"

"No," the younger girls answered in unison.

"Well, they broadcast things from Congress so we can watch Dad on TV if we want."

That got Ellie's attention. "All the time?"

"I don't know, but my history teacher was talking about it. They show all kinds of stuff."

"I wanna see Daddy on TV," Zoey replied.

"Do you still want us to move to Washington, Lizzie?" Ellie hadn't been blind to the tension between her sister and her mother.

"No. This is the way it has to be."

"Because this is how politics is?"

"Yeah. But it's gonna be so cool, you guys. Just wait and see."

After a brief pause in the discussion, Zoey scooted out from under the tree and sat up to address her sisters. "If we don't tell Mommy and Daddy, can we open presents now?"

Liz rejected the idea. "Mom will know. She always does."

"And she'll be mad that we didn't wait," Ellie added as Zoey laid back down, disappointed. "Sorry, Zoey. But I'll tell you guys what I got you if you tell me what you got me."

"No way, El!" Liz protested. "You're just as sneaky as Mom. Last year, you made me tell you, then you lied to me about my gift."

"I didn't lie," the ten-year-old claimed. "I told a little fib because I wanted you to be surprised."

"Yeah, well, this year, I'm not falling for any 'little fibs.'"

"Come on, Lizzie! What letter does my present start with?"

"An X!"

"That's not even a fib! That's a lie."

"It is not."

"My present doesn't start with an X!"

"Yes, it does. Doesn't it, Zo?"

"Uh huh." Zoey's giggle supported Ellie's doubts.

"You guys are tricking me."

"No, we're not," Liz insisted. "It starts with an X."

"Fine. If it's not a xylophone, I'm gonna be really mad."

The End

To Be Continued in Man of the House


End file.
